Liquid Sunlight
by Shirayuki Hikari
Summary: And then the earth opened, swallowing the man in the red coat and the small woman. What they discovered beneath the surface leads to more mysteries. This time, everything will be settled, includind emotions long-hidden. VM and WM
1. Remembrances and the Present

Hey minna! Welcome to my first-ever fanfic! WOW. I've written for a long time but I've never posted one for others to read! Before I can get started I have to find Vash and the others! Milly and Meryl have graciously offered to help me search!  
  
Meryl: I want to know where that jerk is anyway so I can give him a piece of my mind!!  
  
Milly: Just keep things simple, like my little big brother says! Let's just set out some donuts for the trap! * Places donuts within a lasso * When he comes along, just PULL!  
  
Sakura: Wow Milly! Where'd you learn that?  
  
Milly: Cartoons of course!  
  
Sakura: Uh.. Right. now we have to wait for him and devise evil ways to capture the others! Get the rope and chains ready! * Evil laughter * Enjoy the first chapter!  
  
Disclaimer: Come ON, do you really think I own anything?!?!?! I don't even own the car I drive around. Don't sue because it will just be a waste of time, you'll get nothing.  
  
Liquid Sunlight  
  
Chapter 1- Remembrances and the Present  
  
As the twin suns peeked over the horizon, the sky was beautifully colored orange and yellow. The petite woman on the back porch of the small house focused her gaze skyward, not daring to blink as she waited for the definitive second where the sky became its usual cloudless blue. However, as usual, she blinked and the moment was gone, and no trace of the previous colors was left. With a sigh, she returned to sipping the dark coffee in her mug and waited for the day to begin.  
  
"You're thinking about him again, aren't you Meryl?"  
  
Meryl jumped, startled, and whirled around towards the source of the voice. The semi-bulky form of her partner was framed in the doorway, her face uncharacteristically solemn.  
  
"What are you doing up already, Milly? You need your rest," said Meryl, avoiding the question.  
  
"Oh, I just got really hungry!" said Milly with her trademark smile. "We need some more pudding by the way!" She rubbed her slightly protruding stomach and Meryl gave a little giggle.  
  
"I'll pick some up when I go shopping today," said Meryl while standing and stretching her stiff muscles. "We can get an early start on work today, since you're already up."  
  
"Okay!" said Milly cheerfully. "I'll go get dressed." She started to go back into the house but turned around and said, "He'll be back, don't worry. And you'll be so happy, just like I was!" She hurried into the house leaving an open-mouthed Meryl on the porch.  
  
"I don't think I'll be that happy." she muttered into the wind, recalling the afternoon that the love of Milly's life, presumably dead, had returned to her. It had been two months since Vash had left, and both girls were quite depressed. Milly had just finished her normal day's work and had gone to fix a dinner that Meryl would barely touch during the time that Milly could drag her away from the mountain of paperwork she used as a diversion from her sadness. A knock at the door had broken the monotony and surprised both girls.  
  
"I'll get it!' cried Milly in a shadow of her usually cheerful voice. Meryl watched her run down the hallway before returning to a partially completed report. She was soon disturbed, however, by a blood-curdling shriek from her partner. Fearing the worst, Meryl pulled out a few derringers as she rushed to the door, which she promptly dropped at the view from the doorway.  
  
Tears sprang into her eyes as she watched Milly kiss the man whose arms she had leapt into, wrinkling his dark blue suit and running a hand through his dark hair. A gigantic cross, wrapped in canvas, lay in the desert sand beside them. Meryl covered her mouth with both hands as the man gazed up at her with his ice blue eyes and grinned cheekily.  
  
That was almost a month ago. With a slight smirk, Meryl remembered all the noises that came from her and Milly's room all night, banishing her to the room that once belonged to Vash, where she still slept; the fold-away bed she had once occupied in her old room now resided in the closet. She still remembered the first night she spent in his room, climbing under the sheets that smelled so much like him and imagining he was there with her. It had also brought back memories of the days before he left.  
  
.Meryl remembered Milly, covered in dirt, climbing out of the well while she waited in her waitress uniform to have lunch with her.  
  
.She remembered the night she spent sitting on that cliff with Vash. They had sang together, and she sang to him, even working up the courage to scoot closer and lay her head on his shoulder.  
  
.The desperation to save him and the look in his eyes as she stepped in front of the gun aimed at him by the townspeople when they discovered hid true identity popped into her mind.  
  
.With a few tears, Meryl remembered the last time she had gazed into his beautiful aquamarine eyes, the last words he spoke to her, his last wave, and the last flash of his red coat as he walked into the sunrise.  
  
"No, I can't dwell on him!" Meryl said out loud, resolutely wiping her eyes on her sleeve. She turned and marched into the house, leaving her coffee cup in the kitchen before heading into her room and slamming the door shut. She was totally unaware of the two people in the living room.  
  
"Do you think she'll be okay honey?" asked Wolfwood with concern in his voice.  
  
"Yes darling, don't worry," answered Milly. "Meryl is very strong." She grinned. "And besides, she's got me, you, AND some pudding! Friends and pudding make me feel better, just like my big big sister always said!"  
  
Well? Whaddya think? Good, bad, never write again EVER? Go on, click the little button on the left, you know you want to! Please no flames, I'm not that mentally stable!!  
  
~Sakura~ 


	2. Wolfwood's Story

Hey people! I'm back! I can't believe I got two reviews! Thank you to both of them!!

AnonymousTrigunOtaku: Thank you soooo much for your kind words; I didn't think it was good at all and seriously hesitated to post this story. I don't know if the second chapter will be as good, but I hope you like it!

Magicsprite: Yay! Trigun rules! Yes, I do know that Wolf wood dies (tears) but he's one of my favorite characters, so I said what the hell and decided to bring him back! I thought of some lame excuse for him being alive, so I guess you could call it alternate reality. After I read your review I remembered that I forgot to put it in there. Sorry! (Bows at magic's feet) Forgive me!!! About Milly being pregnant, I've read several places that she is and my friend (MAJOR Trigun fan) said she was so I figured I'd throw it into the mix. Thanks for reading my vain attempt at coming close to the greatness that is Trigun.

Sakura: Now it's time for the next- (muffled shouting) –would you get him to shut up over there?!

Milly and Meryl: Sorry all-powerful authoress!

Sakura: We managed to catch Vash, and we're gonna torture him into telling where Nick is! Take off the gag!

Vash: He's dead stupid!!!

Meryl: * whack * No he's not! 

Nick: Yeah! I'm not dead you stupid- (looks into the crazed face of the authoress) – oh shit! RUN!!

Sakura: Gah! Meryl, after him! Milly, read the disclaimer while I'm gone!

Milly: Okay! While the authoress may be all-powerful within this fanfic, in reality she can't control Trigun and owns none of us, no matter how much she wants to! On with the second chapter!

Liquid Sunlight

Chapter Two: Wolfwood's Story

~POV-Wolfwood~

I can tell Small Girl is strained and suffering, although she tries to hide it so Milly and I can be happy that we're together again. She succeeds in putting on that false face for Milly, but I tend to catch on to things that Big Girl misses. The sadness is apparent in her eyes, even when she's smiling at Milly's antics or laughing with her friend. She doesn't know what I found buried with my Cross-Punisher, and I'm not telling her until I'm sure that peace-loving idiot is coming back to us. 

Sometimes I wonder, was how Milly felt? I hope not, because I never want to cause her pain. When I returned to her, the look in her eyes made up for my two months' trek across the desert, searching and walking in circles. If it were anyone else, they'd have to listen to me bitch about it for years to come.

That night, Milly and I made up for the long time we spent apart, Milly not worrying about the hows and whats connected to my reappearance. I knew they would have to be told, but for the time I just gave myself in to the euphoria of once again holding her in my arms. I'm sure Small Girl could hear us from Vash's old room, but she never complained or said a single word about it, which I was grateful for.

The next morning as the three of us sat around the kitchen table eating breakfast (or should I say Big Girl and I eating and Small Girl picking at her food), Milly asked the questions I knew I had to answer. I told her about my bloody and sinful past, meeting White Chapel and Knives, and my mission as a Gung Ho Gun. She accepted all these facts without a tear or a flinch, merely listening with a serious look on her normally smiling and cheerful face. When I finished, she threw her arms around me and buried her head in my neck.

"I understand Nicholas, you did some bad things, but you know you were wrong and feel sorry for what you did. I understand," she said tenderly. She pulled back and her face broke into that wonderful smile that always seemed to make my day brighter. "I'm just so glad you're back!" I smiled back at her, glad to see her genuinely happy demeanor return. But she screwed up her face as though working out a problem in her mind, and then asked the question that I'd hoped she'd overlook in her joy.

"But darling, how are you back? V-vash-san said you w-were…" She gulped hard and stared into my eyes, almost as if saying it would make me disappear once more.

I sighed. "I was dead, and I have no idea why I'm alive. The only thing I remember are voices shouting in my mind. Giving me orders and telling me to find Vash and kill him. When I woke up, I was standing in the middle of the desert, no idea of where I was or how I got there. It took me forever to find a town where I could get directions and find you two." I pulled out a bent cigarette and started to light it when Meryl of all people deftly removed it from my mouth.

"Smoking is bad for the baby, Wolfwood," she said absently, nearly repeating the words that Milly had said to me so long ago.

"What?!" Milly and I both shouted, jumping to our feet. "You're pregnant?!"

"I guess Tongari left his mark before leaving, ne?" I said with a smirk, earning myself a smack from the little dark-haired spitfire, who had turned a magnificent shade of red.

"I'm not pregnant you baka! Milly is!" she shouted at me.

"She is?" My hands fell to my sides.

"I am?" asked Milly, confusion on her sweet face. Meryl fell to the ground. I tried to collect myself as she hauled herself back up.

"Yes you are! First there's the morning sickness. Then I thought you were getting fat from the pudding, but then I realized that you've always eaten that much and never gained an ounce! I'll bet your period was late and you didn't even notice." She calmly dusted off her skirt. "All you have to do is go to the doctor to confirm it."

"I-I'm gonna be a father?" I stuttered out.

Meryl crossed her arms. "Yes." Milly let out a whoop and leapt into my arms, dragging Meryl into the group hug.

That afternoon, I went out and bought a simple diamond ring and proposed to Milly over dinner (I hid the ring in a bowl of pudding and she almost choked on it). She was ecstatic, but we both agreed to wait until Vash came back to have the wedding. When Small Girl made it back to the house after disappearing for a few hours (on my orders) Milly nearly killed by jumping on her while screaming like a banshee. Meryl cried and hugged both of us, but retreated into her room after a while. I think Big Girl missed the sadness mixed in the joy in her eyes that I saw, and I knew exactly who she was thinking of.

~Normal POV~

"Wait up senpai!"

Meryl turned around at the sound of her partner's voice and saw Milly sprinting towards her, Wolfwood walking along behind. She sighed before putting on her best angry face.

"Stop running Milly!" she shouted, feeling as though she were addressing a disobedient child. "You're not supposed to put any stress on yourself, remember?" Milly immediately slowed to a walk, looking guilty, and Meryl waited for her to catch up. When Wolfwood ambled up, Milly locked arms with him and the three headed into town.

"I need to stop at the bank first," Meryl said, leading the way towards the guarded building. At the door, they submitted to a quick search for weapons before they were granted permission to enter. While Meryl and Milly walked to the counter closest to the door, Wolfwood went to examine some artwork on the other side of the room.

"Hello," said the young woman behind the counter.

"Hi," said Meryl, "I need to make a withdrawal."

"Okay. What's your ac-" Gunshots rang outside, cutting her off. The doors were thrown open, revealing five men with bandanas tied around their faces, all carrying guns.

The tallest man, wearing a red bandana and obviously the leader of the group, shouted the classic "Freeze!" and "Hand over all your money!" lines while shoving Milly and Meryl aside. The robbers produced bags that they began to fill with the money they could get to. Wolfwood tried to get to Milly, but froze in his tracks when a gun was trained on his forehead. As others tried to move, a shot was fired and Meryl shut her eyes and shielded herself and Milly from the falling glass that was once a chandelier. When she opened her eyes, glass littered the floor but there was no blood and she breathed a sigh of relief. When Milly stood up with **that** look on her face, Meryl's breath caught in her throat.

"Stealing is really bad, you know!" she said huffily, arms crossed.

The leading gunman blinked twice at her with a look bordering between disbelief and anger before asking dangerously, "What did you just say little lady?!"

"I said, stealing is bad!" shouted Milly. "If you take all the money, the townspeople won't have any for food or water! And senpai can't buy the pudding!"

All the men began laughing heartily at this statement and the shortest man looked at Milly with amusement and asked, "Are you insane or just stupid?"

"I'm not stupid you jerk!" yelled Milly, pulling her stun gun from nowhere and aiming at the man in the re bandana. She was too slow on the draw however, and the man knocked her in the head with the butt of his pistol and she slumped to the floor, unconscious. Meryl gasped as a trickle of blood ran down the side of her head.

" I said freeze, dammit!" shouted the robber with his gun still aimed at Wolfwood.

"Milly!" cried Meryl, moving towards her. Grabbing her shoulder, the man roughly swung her back around and put his gun to her chest.

"Just give me a reason," he whispered, and silent tension filled the air for a few seconds. Meryl silently prayed that Milly and Wolfwood would be okay and prepared to make her move whenever he became distracted. She didn't have to wait long, as the door swung open again, giving her captor the distraction she had pleaded for. The next few seconds felt like minutes to Meryl, as she tried in vain to knock the gun away. The explosion of the gun echoed several times in Meryl's ears while she fell to the ground, pain and a strange warmth spreading across her chest. As she lay on the ground, her eyes focused on the ceiling she heard yells, gunshots, and the thuds of bodies hitting the ground. Vaguely, she heard shouts in Wolfwood's rumbling voice, and over him, in a strangled, she heard someone else shout her name.

"Meryl!"

A flash of red, and then she lost consciousness.

Well, how was it? Exciting? Scary? Don't worry, the voices are telling me that the next chapter will explain a lot of things and maybe a plot will develop out of this mess. Please review and tell me what you think, but please don't flame me. I might cry or destroy public property.

^-^Sakura


	3. Here Without You

Hey everybody! I'm back! I'm sorry for the wait, but my life has been pretty hectic, and my computer enjoys destroying the little work I am able to get done. I want to thank all my reviewers, and I'll answer them at the end instead of up here. This chapter was going to be a songfic because the ideas came to me while listening to "Here Without You" by 3 Doors Down (great song and CD), but it didn't fit and made the story flow weird. But if you listen to the song while reading this, you get the same effect. Unfortunately, while I was gone, Vash managed to escape the clutches of my associates…

Milly and Meryl: We're really sorry! 

Meryl: It was Milly's fault! While I was gone, Wolfwood talked her into setting him free!

Milly: But senpai, Bokushi-san is very persuasive! 

Sakura: Don't worry, Nick will be back!!!

Milly and Meryl: Why? He knows that you're insane and out to capture him!

Sakura: (sigh) Don't you guys know anything? He left his cigarettes, see? 

Meryl: Wow! It'll be easier to lure him back with those. He won't survive for more than a couple hours without going into withdrawals!

Milly: You two are really mean!

Sakura: Do you want Nick back or not?!

Milly: Well I-

Sakura: I thought so! We'll just have to wait it out! Meryl, read the disclaimer.

Meryl: The authoress doesn't own anything, including Trigun or 3 Doors Down, no matter how kawaii she thinks Vash or Brad Arnold are. She just uses them to serve her evil purposes.

Sakura: How true… On with the next chapter!

On a side note, this chapter is kinda introspective on Vash so: 'thoughts' and "speech", 'kay?

Liquid Sunlight

Chapter Three- Here Without You

After slowly lowering his load on a shabby bed, the tall man bent to leave the tiny structure. Shielding his eyes with his hands, he stared in the direction of the small town in the distance. He took out a handkerchief and wiped his sweaty face; the heat was getting to him.

'No, not the heat,' he thought with a goofy grin. 'It's the humidity.' He started to chuckle out loud, surprising himself. The happiness was washing over him in waves. After being gone for so long, he was finally going to see the insurance girls again!

The load he had been carrying shifted on the cot and winced when he hit sore places on his body. Bloodied bandages covered most of his person.

'Knives,' thought Vash with a guilty look on his face. He didn't want to frighten anyone by carrying his unconscious brother into town, so he decided to let him rest in the small shack a few iles away. Hopefully, he'd stay in his three-month coma until Vash got back.

"Well Knives, I'm off!" he said cheerfully. "Be good while I'm gone, okay?" With a last grin at his twin, he shut the door and began his walk across the desert. He rolled up the sleeves of his white shirt to cool off a bit as he walked.

'I wonder how they're doing,' he thought for the billionth time since he'd left them standing at the edge of the small town. A picture of the weeping Milly popped into his mind, a memory from shortly after she'd found out about the fate of her beloved priest. This image was replaced by a memory of her devouring some caramel pudding while Meryl looked on. Milly was grinning through mouthfuls of her favorite food, a look of pure bliss on her face. Vash could almost hear her cheerful voice shouting "Thank you senpai!" and he laughed out loud at the thought.

"I'm sure Milly's fine!" he proclaimed to the desert as he marched along with a huge smile on his face. Vash slowed his pace as he thought of the other insurance girl, whom he had thought and even dreamed about more often then Milly.

"Meryl," he said softly as a scalding breeze passed over his face. He had always had feelings for the petite girl, but only recognized these feelings as love in his last few days with her. The exact moment would have to be when she protected him, taking a huge risk by stepping in front of that gun and trying to talk down the grief-maddened man.

"No one has the right to take the life of another. No one," she'd said. As he heard the words of his mentor repeated, Vash had suddenly realized how alike Meryl and Rem were; they even resembled each other in physical appearance. All the good things he had seen in Rem he now saw in Meryl. Vash felt a love for someone like he hadn't experienced in more than a century. He felt so confused and disoriented, as though he had been hit in the head.

That night, he had tried his best to sort out his feelings while getting ready to "take care of Knives". Vash came to several conclusions, the first being that he didn't love Meryl because she shared traits with Rem, he loved her because those traits were hers; they were the true Meryl beneath the serious and business-like façade. Through all his confusion, Vash also decided he could label his love for Rem as motherly and his love for Meryl as…well…maybe he didn't have it all figured out yet.

Snapping out of his daydream, Vash could see the town looming closer. Then a strange thought came into his mind: How would the girls react to his return? 'They'll be really happy to see me of course!' one part of his mind seemed to say. Vash grinned and happily resumed his marching pace. 'But won't Meryl be angry that you've been gone for so long?' challenged another part of his mind.

Vash looked thoughtful. "Maybe…" he said out loud.

'And you know how she is when she's angry,' he scolded himself. Vash shuddered as he thought of her angry face and her patented slaps.

"Scary!" he said out loud with a panicked look on his face. A group of people headed out of town looked at him strangely. 'Oops, talking to myself again,' Vash thought with a sheepish look at the people. 

A little kid in the group shouted, "Mommy that man is weird!"

"Don't look at him dear," answered his mother, grabbing the child by the hand and hurrying past Vash.

Vash heaved a sigh and walked into the town, disheartened. He needed to find some way to placate Meryl, or else get beaten until unrecognizable.

'But what can I do besides tie her up?' he wondered as he walked along. 'Okay, I'll need some rope, a handkerchief, a-' he broke off his thoughts as he spotted a better option. An old woman held a large straw basket filled with…

"Flowers!" Vash called happily, heading over to the woman.

"Not just any kind of flower young man," she said in a quivery voice, reaching into the basket and withdrawing a beautiful red flower. She held it up in her wrinkled hand for Vash to see. "Roses! Very rare."

"Wow!" exclaimed Vash with huge sparkly eyes. "Meryl would love one of these!" He stuck his hands in his pockets, fishing around for money. After digging deep, he pulled out both of his pockets and fell to his knees.

"NOOOOOOOO!!!" he wailed, rivers of tears running down his face and attracting more stares.

The old woman began to cackle as Vash flopped down on his butt with a huge sigh. "If it means that much to you," she said holding the rose out to him. Vash jumped up and his eyes became huge and sparkly again.

"Really?!" he asked in disbelief.

"Yes," she said, stretching her arm out farther. "Just take care of your lady and never hurt her, okay?"

"Alright!" Vash shouted, grabbing the rose and jumping into the air. As he turned to go he said, "Thanks grandma, I owe you one!" He tried to hurry off, but found himself facedown on the ground.

WHAP! "What did you say young man?!"

Vash rubbed the back of his head and said, "Uh…thank you very much miss, I'm grateful for your generosity?"

"Much better."

"Bye!" Vash waved and headed off to find the insurance girls.

As he walked, he pictured Meryl's face when she saw him; he'd dreamed about the moment and could see the happy and surprised look already. Milly would probably squeal and jump on him the moment she saw him. But would he get a hug from Meryl? 

Vash remembered the last time he had hugged Meryl. She felt so tiny and fragile in his arms, although he knew she was far from fragile. Her hair felt feather-soft against his cheek and her arms had felt wonderful against his back. At first, she had stiffened up and protested, but she gradually gave into the hug, loosening her muscles against his grip. Of course, that hug had ended with Vash on the ground, but hey, anything could happen!

Thinking about that hug gave Vash another problem to think about that was on his mind at that time as well. Should he tell her his feelings? How would she react? She thought he was just some moron who wandered around and helped people out of sheer dumb luck. If she rejected him, it would ruin the easy friendship they'd developed only days before he left. Whenever he thought or dreamed about Meryl, he could picture himself telling her everything and her returning those feelings- but would she?

"Argh!" Vash cried, grabbing his hair with both hands. He'd never felt more confused about a person in his entire life. Looking up, he realized that he had been wandering around in circles for fifteen minutes. He started to curse in an extremely loud voice, but was interrupted by gunshots and what sounded like shattering glass down the street.

"What the hell?" He ran down the street, just noticing the huge crowd around the bank. Vash immediately headed towards the burly man with a gold star on his chest.

"What's goin' on officer?" he asked.

"A hostage situation, that's what! Bastards are holding on to them until they get the money out the back door." He sighed. "No one hurt yet, but I dunno how long that'll last."

Just then they heard a yell from within the building and a loud thump. Vash started; he recognized that voice. 'Milly!' he thought. 'And if she's there that means-' He heard another shout, confirming his suspicions. Without a second thought, he charged up the stairs and flung open the door. The sight that met his eyes both startled and scared the blond gunman.

On the floor lay Milly, blood trickling down the side of her head. Across the room stood Wolfwood- WOLFWOOD?! -who was guarded by a man with a shotgun. Three other bandits guarded other patrons and employees grouped in a corner and heaved money into bags. The last man stood with his back to Vash, gun pressed against the chest of a tiny, dark-haired woman-Meryl!

Vash had about three seconds to survey the situation before it exploded. The henchman nearest the door rushed Vash, who easily dodged, taking the gun and knocking him unconscious in one fluid movement. When Vash looked up, the man holding Meryl fired, point blank.

He stared, horrified, as she fell, so slowly, towards the glass-littered floor. She hit the ground, bounced twice and was still, blood spreading across her white blouse and pooling underneath her.

Before Vash could even react, Wolfwood had taken care of two guys and aimed and shot another with his partner's gun. Vash finally snapped back into reality and tore his eyes away from Meryl to aim at the monster who shot her.

'Please let her be okay, please, please, please let her live!' he cried over and over in his mind. Pulling the trigger, he shot the robber's gun away and started towards him. The bandit grabbed his right hand with his left and tried to retreat to the back door. Vash threw the bulletless gun and hit him perfectly in the back of the head. He flopped over, out cold.

"Get OUT people!" Wolfwood shouted as the last of the hostages escaped the building, many screaming. He ran back to Milly, who was beginning to stir. "Milly, honey, are you okay?!" he asked in a panicked voice, helping her sit up, placing an arm around her shoulder. His other hand strayed to her stomach, and Milly's hand shortly joined his as she opened her eyes. 

"I'm fine but what ab- SENPAI!!!" she shrieked, seeing Vash kneeling beside her partner in a pool of blood.

"Oh god, oh god…" Vash muttered. He ripped open her shirt so he could get a better look at the wound. He winced at the size of it, but the bullet had gone through. He couldn't tell if it had hit anything fatal. He looked into her face and saw her eyes begin to close. "Meryl!" he shouted as she went limp in his arms. "Please don't die!" he cried, removing his shirt and pressing down on her chest, trying to stop the blood.

The sheriff ran into the building and gasped at the scene of the tall blond man cradling the bloody form of a young woman. Milly, restrained by Wolfwood, was trying desperately to get to her friend.

"Dammit!" the sheriff yelped. "We gotta get her to the doctor, quick! This way!" Vash gently lifted Meryl and moved after him as fast as he dared.

Milly stopped fighting Wolfwood and buried her head in his chest, sobbing loudly.

"Sshh." Wolfwood stroked her back, trying his best to calm her. "It's okay honey. She's gonna be fine." Milly looked up at him, tears running down her face.

"D-do you really think so?" she sniffed.

"I know so," said Wolfwood in a deep, soothing voice. "Small Girl is strong. And Vash is with her."

Milly smiled through her tears and said, "You're right." She stood shakily. Wolfwood got up with her and gently wiped her tears away.

"Let's go home and get you cleaned up, okay?" said Wolfwood. Milly nodded, and they walked out the door together, his arm around her waist.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 

(A/N: Did you really think I'd leave you hanging again? I'm not that cruel!)

Several hours later, Vash had worn a path on the wooden floorboards of the waiting room. The last update he had gotten had been two hours ago, when the motherly nurse told him Meryl was still bleeding a lot, but she was otherwise stable; the bullet had missed her vitals. He threw himself into a chair and sat with his head in his hands.

When the door creaked open, Vash jerked his head up to see (once again to his surprise) Nicholas D. Wolfwood. Vash gave a small smile and asked, "How's the Big Girl?"

"Fine," Wolfwood grunted. "I bandaged her head and she's sleeping now." He sat down next to Vash.

"That's good." Silence ensued for the next few minutes.

"I guess I have some explaining to do, huh?" said Wolfwood, leaning back in the chair.

"I'd say so. I saw you die, but you're back. How?"

"Honestly? I don't know. I just woke up to find myself standing in the middle of the desert. All I remember are voices, telling me to make Vash the Stampede suffer." Wolfwood pulled out a bent cigarette and lit it. He took a drag and slowly breathed out. "What about you?" he asked, the cigarette flopping around loosely in his mouth. "Where the hell have you been, huh?"

As Vash opened his mouth to answer, the plump nurse came out of the door again. Both men jumped up and Vash raced over to her. The nurse held up her hands.

"Miss Stryfe is going to be fine. The bleeding stopped and we were able to stitch both the entrance and exit wounds. The exit wound is a little lower due to a ricochet, but it's nothing to worry about. She needs to rest for a few more hours and then she can go home to rest."

Vash sighed in relief. "Can we see her?" he asked. The nurse bit her lip.

"Just for a second. And only one of you. She's not really supposed to have visitors yet." She winked at Vash. "But I can see you're really worried, so last door on the left." Vash gave her a grateful smile and took off down the hallway.

When he reached the door, he opened it gently and stepped inside. He listened to Meryl's gentle, even breathing before going closer to the bed. The setting sun cast a strange red light from the window and reflected off of her hair. Vash reached out and brushed a few stray strands away from her peaceful face.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, stroking her cheek. "If I'd only gotten there sooner." Bandages were wrapped all the way around her chest and her left shoulder. They were wrapped down far enough so that Meryl wasn't exposed, even though she didn't have a shirt on. Vash gently pulled the sheets up over her as the nurse poked her head in.

"Come on!" she whispered urgently. Vash waved her off and she shut the door.

He turned back to Meryl and gently kissed her on the forehead. "I'll be back," he whispered, placing the rose into her right hand. "I promise." He looked at her sleeping form one last time before he hurried out the door.

"Vash…" Meryl murmured in her sleep.

Wasn't that just too kawaii? Thanks to the new reviewers:

AkinaMeigatsuno: Don't worry, Chill!!!! Vash/Meryl forever! Are you happy now? I hope so! Thanks for reading.^_^

ShadaHack: Here you go! I'm sending this to you with a bottle of potent medications! Aren't those little extras great! Thank you for your compliment! (blushes) I'm so happy!

blood-lust6: BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I am evil aren't I? Feel the terror of my cliffhangers and lack of plot! I'm glad you like my perspective change, I like to be different.

Thanks to everyone, you've all been so nice! I'm probably gonna remove my notice after I put up chapter four, so read the responses quick!

LUV ^^

Sakura


	4. Fear and Forgetfulness

Hey hey minna! I'm back with (drumroll) Chapter 4! On my quest to capture the guys, I've enlisted some, uh, help…

Meryl: Exactly why the hell are they here again?!

Sakura: They're experts at Vash-hunting so I figured what the hey, they might as well make themselves useful.

Knives-sama: Me, help you? Please you silly mortal.

Legato-sama: I'm dead, dumbass. How in the world can I do anything?

Sakura: Oh suck it up boys. There is a small condition to my offer…

Knives-sama: Why does that scare me?

Sakura: You must become my slaves forever! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Chains Knives-sama and Legato-sama to the wall)

Knives-sama: You will pay human woman. As soon as I get down you will all die!

Sakura: Whatever. Now it's time to unveil my new gadget: the Plotilizer 6000!

Milly: What does that do?

Sakura: Simple really! Since I seem incapable of creating an actual plot for this BS story, this little doodad will do it for me! (Presses button) What the hell?! Nothing happened! Dammit, no batteries!

Milly: I've got some! (Digs in pocket and throws out several items, including her gun, which lands on Meryl's foot)

Meryl: Owwwwww!

Sakura: Um, this could take a while, so read the answers to the reviews, and once I've had my say, continue on to my pointless, plotless story! 

Thanks to all reviewers! I also found out that I had the "do not accept anonymous reviews" thing turned on, so sorry to all of you who tried to review and couldn't! (Punches self in head) Stupid me…

Orion Hime: Gracias chica! I totally agree! Get ready for major V/M fluff in the next chapter. Go ahead and make a dentist appointment!

Magicsprite: I know it, I'm absolutely revolting in my evilness, no? Yes I did cheat, and it's okay, as long as you r & r eventually, it's cool! I'm still really happy that you like it, and hopefully a plot will become evident soon. You've reviewed four times now! I'm so happy!

Zsilver: Joy! Rapture! A new reviewer bent on hurting me! You were really joking right? I update as soon as I can, but my life is very hectic, but when school comes in, I'll have more time, when I'm supposed to be doing my homework! You put ME on your favorites? (Big hug)

blood-lust6: I'm glad I made your day better! Keep on reading and you'll have even better days. Yes, I didn't live up to my reputation for cliffhangers, but oh well. About kissing me, that depends if you're a guy. 

AnonymousTrigunOtaku: Thanks for reviewing again! I'll keep it coming, but let me ask you, is anyone out of character? Wolfwood seems a little out of character, but I dunno… Review again or e-mail me, I think it's displayed in my profile.

Keep a look out for a one-shot I wrote while I should have been finishing this chapter. Who knows what lame title I'll come up with from the empty space in my brain? On with the story after my useless talk!

Liquid Sunlight

Chapter 4- Fear and Forgetfulness

"So let me get this straight," said Wolfwood as he trudged up a sand dune a little behind Vash. He was breathing hard and had abandoned his cigarette a few yarz back. "You defeated your brother, then drug him around unconscious for 3 and a half months just to bring the psychopath bent on destroying humanity here?"

Vash turned around and scratched the back of his head. "Geez, do you really have to put it that way Wolfwood?" They had reached the small shack and were preparing to go in. Wolfwood lit another cigarette to calm himself. 

"Sometimes I don't know how the hell you think Tongari."

"See, there you go with that stupid nickname again and…I…" Vash trailed off and stood in the middle of the doorway.

"What's wrong with you?!" Wolfwood pushed past him and stared, mouth agape, at the empty bed. "Oh shit," he said, "where the hell is he?"

Vash ran to the window and looked out at the dark and empty desert. "He couldn't have gone too far! He was injured!"

"Well let's go look for him, baka!" Wolfwood cried, turning around and nearly crashing into a tall someone. He looked up into a cold, emotionless face. Wolfwood shrank back, intimidated and a little frightened, although he would never admit it. At that exact moment, he realized he was completely unarmed and gulped.

"Knives!" called Vash happily. "You had me worried! Where were you?" Knives simply stared at him with a strange look on his face. "Knives? Are you alright?"

"Is that my name? Knives?" he asked and Vash realized what the expression on his face was- confusion.

"You can't be serious!" exclaimed Wolfwood, slapping himself on the forehead with both and hands. He threw himself to the ground and muttered, "Holy hell."

"I'll ask again, what kind of priest are you?" Vash said.

"Do I know you guys?" Knives asked in his expressionless voice.

"Yeah! I'm your brother!" said Vash in anguished tones. "Don't you remember?"

Knives shook his head. "No, I don't remember but we do look at lot alike."

"Because we're twins!"

"I have a twin brother, huh?"

"God, give me strength," muttered Wolfwood.

"Do you remember my name?" Vash asked.

"I don't remember my own name, how the hell am I supposed to remember yours?" snapped Knives.

Vash sighed. "I'm Vash. They call me Vash the Stampede. Ring a bell?"

Knives shrugged and said, "No not really." He looked at Wolfwood. "He doesn't look familiar either. What's your name Preacher Man?"

"Nicholas D. Wolfwood, now can we please get out of here Vash? It's freezin'!" Wolfwood cried. Night had crept up on them as they talked in the shack. "And," Wolfwood added, "it's past time to pick up Meryl as well."

"Right," said Vash. "Let's go." He motioned for Knives to follow, and he obliged, taking almost four steps before falling to his knees, teeth gritted in pain.

"Can one of you idiots help me?" he snarled. Vash sighed and helped him up, putting Knives arms around his shoulders. Wolf wood walked ahead of the two brothers, muttering to himself. 

"Damn!" He threw his cigarette down and pulled out a new one. "Can't believe this… go up there expecting a crazy murderer, come down with Mr. No-Emotions-Or-Memory… Geez…" He took a deep drag on the cigarette and walked on. Vash watched his retreating back with amusement.

"So," said Knives while taking careful steps and leaning heavily on Vash, "who's Meryl?"

"Well, it's kinda a long story," Vash said with a sheepish smile.

"I've got time," Knives said. He motioned with his free left hand towards the distant town.

"Point taken. She and her partner Milly were assigned by their insurance company to watch me 24 hours a day and 'prevent me' from causing disasters. But that was more than three years ago, when I first met them." Vash glanced up at the fifth moon, the ugly hole standing out among smaller craters. "They still follow me around, but not because it's their job; the insurance girls worry about me a lot, and really do care for me." Wolfwood grunted from in front of him.

"And how does he fit in the picture?" asked Knives.

"Oh, um…" Vash struggled to find an answer without reminding him of the Gung Ho Guns or his goals to eventually destroy what he called the lesser race. He didn't want him to remember these things- at least not yet. "We just came upon him along the way, and he joined up with us."

"What about you?" Knives asked.

"What about me?" Vash repeated.

"I mean what were you doing wandering around the desert? And how long have I been unconscious? How long was I in that sweltering hellhole?"

"Slow down, slow down!" Vash exclaimed. "One question at a time! I was 'wandering around the desert' to spread peace and chase the mayfly known as love!" Vash held up his right hand, making his "love and peace" sign.

Knives looked at him strangely. "That sounds ridiculous. I'd imagine I thought you were quite the idiot." Wolfwood roared with laughter as Vash blushed and pouted.

"He's got a point Tongari," said Wolfwood with a smirk at Vash.

"I'm hurt you guys," sobbed Vash. Knives squinted in the direction of the town and pointed.

"Some woman is running at us," he said and his two companions turned to look.

"Oh, it's the Big Girl," Vash said. Milly was waving as she ran towards them, and Vash waved back as Knives protested the sharp movements. When she reached them, she skidded to a stop in front of Wolfwood.

"Hello Vash-san! Who's your friend?"

Vash cleared his throat and said, "This is my brother, Knives. He's gonna stay with us for a while."

"That's good!" cried Milly with a smile, pumping her fist into the air. "Family is very important! Nice to meet you Knives-san!" She extended her hand to him.

"Who are you?" Knives asked, looking down at her hand is disdain.

"Oh, sorry! I'm Milly Thompson of the Bernardelli Insurance Society!" She gave him a friendly grin, then grabbed his hand and shook it. Knives was shocked for a few seconds before yanking his hand away and wiping it on his shirt. Wolfwood growled and grabbed Milly's hand.

"Oookay," said Vash. "Why did you run all the way out here?"

"Oh!" She snapped her fingers and exclaimed, "The doctor brought Meryl home in an ambulance just now because you guys were so late! Senpai was awake for a bit, but now she's sleeping."

"You left her alone?" Wolfwood cried in dismay.

"Yes, but she'll be fine!" She looked at Vash. "She really missed you a lot Vash-san, and she was really down for a long time. She'll be happy to see you!"

'What?' thought Wolfwood. 'I didn't think she realized how bad Meryl felt! She's more perceptive than she looks.'

Milly's expression turned thoughtful and she added, "Of course, she'll probably be mad that you were gone for so long…" Vash smiled nervously.

"Yeah, I know she will," he said as they continued their walk into town.

"And the strangest thing was, when they brought Senpai in, she was holding a flower in her hand, a rose!" said Milly. Vash felt the blood rush to his face and looked down at the ground. Oh, the teasing he'd endure if Wolfwood saw him blush!

"We're almost there!" sang Milly. "We have a cot that Knives-san can sleep on, but I dunno where to put you Vash-san…"

Vash gave her a strange look and asked, "Why can't I have my old room back? I mean if Wolfwood's in there, I'm sure he won't mind shar-"

"But that's Senpai's room now!" exclaimed Milly.

"So where's Wolfwood sleeping?" Vash asked, confused.

"With… me, silly!" Milly said, pulling her key out of her pocket. Vash dropped Knives on the front porch, stunned. Knives cursed and let out a gasp of pain as he hit the hard boards.

"W-W-W-WHAT?!?!?!" Vash screamed, and several lights in other houses popped on.

"Ssshh! Calm down Tongari!" hissed Wolfwood. Milly got the door open and Vash absently helped Knives into the house. Milly quickly made up the cot, and Knives sank into it, asleep before his head hit the pillow.

"So you two are-?" asked Vash, waving his hands around, trying to make himself understood.

"Yes," said Wolfwood gruffly. Milly just smiled, her cheeks tinged a little pink.

"And you're-?"

"Yeah."

"You-?"

"Yeah."

"And her-?"

"YES!" Vash lunged at Milly and grabbed her left hand, gasping at the sight of her ring. He picked her up in a hug and spun her around the room, Milly giggling madly. Wolfwood couldn't help but smile as the big goofball released his fiancé and grinned at both of them.

"I'm so happy for you guys!" cried Vash, beaming at the two. "I never expected it at all!" Tears flowed freely down his face as he shouted, "Such a prime example of LO-OVE! It's so beautiful!"

"Shut up!" cried Wolfwood. He tackled Vash to the ground and pinned him there, the priest's face blood red.

"Aww, did I embarrass little Nicholas?" Vash asked in a mock baby voice.

"No, baka," Wolfwood said, driving his fist into the top of Vash's head, making his chin hit the ground. "You'll wake up Small Girl or your psychotic brother with your mindless babble!"

"Oh yeah!" said Vash. He slipped out of Wolfwood's grip and crawled away. "I gotta go check on the Insurance Girl!" Straightening up, he ran down the hallway.

Milly turned towards Wolfwood and said, "I'm so glad Vash-san's back!"

"I guess it is kinda nice to have that idiot around," Wolfwood admitted. "I forgot that he was my main source of entertainment!"

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 

In the other room, Vash sat on the edge of the bed, just watching Meryl sleep. He was overjoyed that she was okay. He couldn't see her face because she lay on her side with her back to him, but he could imagine the contented look. 

When he heard the door to Milly and Wolfwood's room close, he rubbed his eyes and glanced at the clock on the wall. Midnight. Vash let out a huge yawn and stretched, sleepiness ready to overcome him. He looked down at the tantalizing open space in the bed beside Meryl.

'It couldn't hurt, right? (SO tired.) I mean, she's asleep, and I am totally beat. (Eyelids… heavy…) She'll never know,' he thought to himself. Those reassurances in mind, Vash removed his shoes and lifted the covers. After a slight hesitation, he slid in beside her, trying hard not to jar the bed. Meryl made no protests and didn't even move. Vash sighed.

Because her back was to him, he breathed in the soft violet scent of Meryl's hair. It was wonderful. Running his scarred fingers through it, he realized it was quite a bit longer than before; it nearly reached her shoulders. He scooted closer to her to bury his face in the silky softness, instinctively wrapping himself around her petite body, careful of her wounds.

'This must be what heaven feels like,' he thought, lost in the moment until…

"Vash…?" He flinched at her voice, even though it was soft and weak, containing no trace of her usual vigor. 'Oh crap!' Vash thought. 'I am so dead!'

"I-I'm really sorry but this was the only place to sleep and I was so tired and I had to so, so, so, so, … please don't hurt me!" he pleaded, his voice barely a whisper. Meryl struggled to sit up, and managed to push herself up far enough so she could face him.

"I'm glad you're back, but you're acting really strange," she said in the same weak voice. "And if I had enough strength to make it hurt, I'd hit you so hard your brother would feel it." Vash sighed, relieved he had escaped her wrath. He started to get up when Meryl grabbed his wrist, her tiny hand unable to totally encircle it.

"Don't go," she said softly. "You're really warm." She lay back down in the same position and Vash pulled his leg back in, curling himself around her once more.

"But in the morning, you are so dead," Meryl murmured, sleep claiming her again. Vash gulped and closed his eyes, trying to sleep next to the person he feared most. 'Sleeping with the enemy,' he thought with a small noise of panic.

Oh hell, still no plot. GRRR… If anyone has anything they wanna say or add, e-mail me, I think it's displayed. Anywho, click the little gray button that says, "GO". Yeah, that one! Do it now or face my wrath! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Sakura


	5. Growing Family

Hey people! I know what you're thinking. I've been gone for over a month and left my poor story to decompose under the stories of more dedicated writers who actually update! I'M SORRY! I didn't mean to! School just came in, and I am taking College Chemistry as a junior in high school! The insanity doesn't end there. I also have soccer every day and a computer that works when it feels like it. Please forgive me for leaving the story for so long, but I just haven't had the time. I've written in my notebook whenever I get 2 minutes, but I am just now getting a chance to type it up. So please be patient, my updating habits will improve with time! Enjoy the next chapter and thanx to the reviewers!

Liquid Sunlight

Chapter 5- Growing Family

"All RIGHT!" Vash shouted, jumping to his feet as Wolfwood and Milly came in the door, each carrying a bag of groceries. When Milly placed hers on the kitchen table, Vash pawed through it before yanking out his prize.

"Donuts!" he shouted, ripping the box open and grabbing one. "Thank you, thank you so much," he whispered and took a huge bite.

"Baka," muttered Knives from the corner of the kitchen.

"I heard dat!" said Vash thickly, his mouth full of donuts.

"Now now boys," Milly scolded them. She sounded exactly like a doting mother. She looked down at Vash who was now chewing on his second donut. "Where'd you sleep last night Vash-san?" Vash choked on his donut, hacking and coughing. Wolfwood, always helpful, smacked him on the back as his face turned blue.

When he had collected himself, Vash said, "Uh, I piled up some blankets in the living room!"

Wolfwood shook his head and gave Vash a strange look. "No you didn't," he said. "When I got up last night to get a drink of water, Knives was the only person there." His expression changed from confusion to frightening comprehension and he gave Vash a knowing grin; Vash cowered in his seat.

'Oh god!' he thought. 'Wolfwood knows! Crap!'

Knives grunted and said, "He should know. I was trying to sleep and he turned on the damn lights!" Wolfwood shrugged with a smirk. He had bigger fish to fry.

'I knew Vash had the hots for the Small Girl, but when she's injured…' Wolfwood thought.

"I know where you slept then if you didn't sleep in the living room," Milly said with a smile. She rubbed her stomach.

"Y-you do?" Vash asked, blushing furiously.

"Yes I do, and there's no reason to be ashamed about it Vash-san!"

"There's not?" asked Wolfwood and Vash together.

"Of course not silly!" she proclaimed with the same cheerful smile. "But I just don't understand why you chose the kitchen of all places!" The floor rattled as Vash, Wolfwood, and even Knives fell to the floor.

"Is she really that naïve?" Knives asked incredulously.

"It was the only other place in the house he could have slept and I didn't hear him leave last night so…" Milly trailed off as Wolfwood stood to whisper in her ear. The longer he spoke, the bigger Milly's eyes became and she covered her mouth with a gasp.

'Busted…' thought Vash. 'She's gonna give me hell now.'

Out loud he said, "We didn't do anything, honest! I just-" Milly interrupted him by throwing her arms around his neck and bursting into tears.

"Oh Vash-san!" she cried, wiping her face on her sleeve. "You were so worried about Senpai that you sat up in her room all night to watch her? How kawaii!" She pulled out a handkerchief as Wolfwood fell over again.

'Tongari's the only guy I know who could get out of a situation like that,' Wolfwood thought.

Vash scratched the back of his head and gave Milly his goofy smile. She grinned back and headed over to the stove. Wolfwood grumbled as he pulled himself off the ground, grumbling, and joined the other two guys at the table. Milly began to make pancakes.

"So, what's on the agenda today honey?" Wolfwood asked.

Milly answered, "Well now that Vash-san is back, we can finally get ready!" Wolfwood grinned.

Vash looked from one to the other, confused, and asked, "Get ready for what?"

"The wedding of course!" Milly proclaimed, spatula in hand. "You'll be best man, Senpai's the maid of honor and-"

"Uh, honey?" Wolfwood pointed at her pancakes, which were black and smoking.

"Oh my gosh!" Milly cried. She turned off the stove and stuck the skillet, pancakes and all into the sink.

"Who wants cereal?" Milly asked cheerfully as Wolfwood and Vash sighed. Knives glared at all of them, already sick of living with them.

"What's all the shouting about?"

Four heads whipped around to see the tiny figure in the doorway, leaning against the wall.

"Oh senpai!" cried Milly, jumping to her feet. "You're up! I'm so glad." Meryl had managed to put her good right arm into her pajama top and button it halfway up. Her left arm in its sling hung outside the shirt, the sleeve dangling behind her.

Meryl's eyes widened as she took in the sight of both Vash and Knives sitting at the kitchen table. "V-vash," she gasped in disbelief. "You're… you're really here!" She brushed away a tear.

"Why senpai! What's wrong?" Milly asked, alarmed.

"It's just- I had this really weird dream last night and now here he is!" Meryl said as fast as she could with tears in her eyes.

With a gentle smile on his face, Vash stood up and started towards Meryl, arms open. The next second, his feet seemed to freeze to the floor as Knives lunged at her.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

~ POV- Meryl ~

Ugh. It's those voices again. Can't they just shut up?! I feel so weak, and I'm trying to rest here! And I was having such a nice dream too, even though that scenario will never come true.

Sigh.

I can tell the high-pitched voice is Milly, but who's she talking to? The voice is so deep. Could it be…?

No. It's Wolfwood. He's using what I've named the "lovey-dovey sexy voice", which he uses to get Milly to do things she doesn't want to or shouldn't do. I heard the door shut.

'Time to get up,' I thought, opening my eyes and struggling to sit up. God it hurt!

"Meryl! Let me help you!" I looked around through tears of pain to spot Milly with an extremely anxious look on her face.

"Milly? Are you okay?" I asked, grabbing her hand with my right, which didn't hurt me.

"Yeah!" she said with a grin. "Just a little bump to the head." She demonstrated, smacking herself in the side of the head.

"And Wolfwood? He's fine?" I pressed.

"Yes," said Milly. "He's fine! You're the one who got shot and you're worried about everyone else!"

I released her hand. "I'm glad everyone's okay." As my hand slid across the sheets, it ran across a rougher material and finally landed on cold steel. I looked down.

"W-what?! What the hell?!" It was Vash's red coat, folded underneath his trusty silver six-shooter.

"Calm down Senpai," Milly said soothingly. "Bokushi-san found these things lying in the desert with his Cross-Punisher and thought you'd hold onto them for him. You'll probably have to give them ba-"

"MILLY! Let's GO!" Wolfwood shouted.

"Coming!" she yelled back, jumping from the chair. She gave me an apologetic look and said, "Sorry Senpai, but I gotta go get groceries. I'll tell you everything and bring you some breakfast when I get back." She ran to the door.

"Milly, I-" SLAM! "Dammit!"

I settled back on the pillows, taking a sip of water from the cup beside my bed. The glass made a dull clink as I set it back on the table and looked down at the folded material. Sunlight reflected off the weapon.

I stared down at the two items, thinking about their owner. I remembered my dream: Vash lying beside me, arms around my waist, wanting nothing but to just sleep with me. I smiled sadly as I thought of the impossibility that it would ever happen. I missed him so much, and not knowing his whereabouts was killing me. I held in tears.

Finally I picked up the gun. The steel felt warm in my hand, and it was every bit as heavy as I'd imagined. Wolfwood must have polished it off before bringing it to me because the outside was smooth and shiny, but it looked clogged with sand.

With some difficulty, I opened the cylinder and watched six shell casings and a pile of sand fall into my lap; Vash had used all his ammo before throwing the gun aside. I tried not to imagine his fate after such a tough fight, and set the gun down with the shell casings and sand.

Unfolding the coat, I buried my in it to gather the last traces of his scent that had been worn away by the sand and wind. Upon examining it more closely, I realized that in several places a darker crimson stained the red coat. He'd been injured. Tears threatened to overflow again.

My heart seemed to clench inside my chest. I pushed the coat and gun away, trying to mentally push away memories and thoughts of him, I cried into my pillow, sleeping again after awhile.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

~POV- Still Meryl ~

"All RIGHT!" I jerked up, gasping in pain and cursing whoever had felt the need to shout while I was sleeping. 'Who the hell could be shouting?' I thought angrily. 'That's it. It's time to rejoin the world.'

Stupidly, I looked down at myself. I wore pajama pants, but I didn't have a shirt on. Bandages were wrapped around my chest and my left arm was in a sling. Well, I could remedy the shirt problem easily enough.

I slowly turned to let my legs dangle over the edge of the bed. Ignoring how weak my muscles felt, I pushed myself to my feet and took an unsteady step. My head rushed and I felt so dizzy I was afraid that I'd fall.

'Okay, I'm up,' I thought, trying to coach myself. 'Now to get dressed… There.' I spotted the pajama top hanging in the closet only a few steps away. It caused my head to spin, but I made it and removed the shirt from its hanger.

Cautiously, I tried to move my left arm. Fiery pain spread across my chest, back, and arm. Not smart.

I gave up with a sigh and gently pulled the other sleeve onto my arm. Buttoning the shirt was hard with only one hand, so I only managed to get half of them done. While I was dressing, more shouts and crashes could be heard from the kitchen.

'What in the world are Milly and Wolfwood doing? Throwing a party?' I wondered as I shuffled slowly down the hallway, finally making it to the kitchen door. Sunlight slanting through the window blinded me as I leaned against the door facing.

"What's all the shouting about?" I asked, blinking and trying to clear the spots from in front of my eyes. I heard Milly gasp.

"Oh Senpai!" she cried. "You're up! I'm so glad."

My eyes finally adjusted to the light and I could see the three men sitting at the table. One was Wolfwood, the second a tall blond man that resembled the third man who was…

"V-vash," I choked out, hardly able to believe he was really here, sitting right in front of me as though he had never left. He didn't look any different except for the lack of a red coat. My eyes were probably huge at this point. "You're… you're really here!" I felt a hot tear trickle down my face and quickly wiped it away, embarrassed.

"Why senpai! What's wrong?!" Milly asked with that same concerned look in her eyes.

Now I was really embarrassed about the way I was acting. Meryl Stryfe doesn't get so emotional! She's cool, calm, and collected; she doesn't cry over some man who leaves her alone for months and doesn't care at all for her! "It's just- I had this really weird dream last night and now here he is!" I explained, talking so fast I could barely understand myself. I felt the tears rush to my eyes again.

Vash stood up and strode towards me, arms open. He had a gentle smile on his face and his handsome aquamarine eyes were just as clear and inviting as I remembered. At that moment, I wanted nothing better than to collapse into his arms and let my tears go. I wanted to tell him how much I missed him, how happy I was that he was back, and how I truly felt…

My path was cut off as the other blond man at the table flung himself at me. His hard, muscled body hit mine and he wrapped his arms around me, squeezing my tender wounds and causing me to cry out in pain.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

~ POV- Knives ~

Stupid humans.

I don't know why I'm constantly thinking that. Or why the presence of the priest or the tall woman makes me seethe with hatred. All I can do is wait until my wounds heal to escape this place.

The truth is, this burning hatred for humans is the only thing I remember. Sure, I remember basic things like the sky should be blue, how to walk and speak, and the names of objects. Details are what's fuzzy. I had no idea I had a brother or anything else when I awoke. I didn't even know how I came to be in the condition I was in.

I like the name Knives so I'll keep it, even if I'm being deceived and it is not my true name.

As I spend more time with my twin, I realize that physical appearance is the only likeness we share. He becomes more and more asinine in my eyes as the hours pass. Also, I get fragmented memories when he does certain things or starts that ridiculous love and peace stuff.

This morning, he sits at the table eating donuts. I've determined that he will do anything to get one. Idiot. He had little choice for breakfast, as the tall woman has burnt another meal. Suddenly, I heard a new voice.

"What's all the shouting about?"

I whip my head around and freeze. That woman… she's so… familiar. Memories flashed through my mind. I could even hear her voice, singing that ridiculous song.

My head pounded a I felt a deep guilt settle on my stomach. I'd done something wrong, terribly wrong. And I was apologetic beyond words.

Ignoring my injuries, I jumped up and raced past my shocked brother to embrace the woman. She gave a cry of pain that I both reveled in and hated myself for causing. Actual tears ran down my face.

"Rem," I heard myself sob, "Rem, I'm so sorry! I didn't want it to happen, I swear! I'm so sorry!" I squeezed her closer to myself, emotions running high and deep, shuddering sobs wracking my body. She gave a little gasp as my grip increased in force.

Suddenly, I was pulled away and shaken roughly, looking into my brother's eyes. I could tell he was angry and confused. I looked down at my hands.

Blood.

The sticky red liquid ran down my hand, the smell of it overpowering me.

As suddenly as it began, the feelings left me and I was empty once more. Looking down at the shaking woman, I realized her violet-gray eyes couldn't be those of the woman I had remembered, this Rem who filled my heart with a grief I must have held hidden for a long time. Rem was also taller, not as petite.

Staring into her eyes, I tried to remember; what had I done? What could I have possibly done to cause myself so much guilt and grief?

Confused and scared of the new memories, I tried to flee. To where, my panicked mind did not know. I only knew that I had to get out. In the living room, I tripped and fell, landing on the cot. For the first time I can remember, I fell unconscious.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

~ POV- Normal ~

Vash, bewildered, watched Knives try to run away, but fall onto the cot. He was still and Vash assumed he had fainted.

Meryl sat on the floor, gasping in pain and trying to reassure Milly at the same time. Milly was trying to check the damage to Meryl's back, as no blood had leaked through her chest wound. A little blood had gone through both the bandages and the shirt in the back. Wolfwood brushed past Vash on his way to get more gauze to stop the bleeding,

Vash kneeled down beside Meryl and took her hand. She gave him a weak smile. Milly was frantically rattling through drawers to find a pair of scissors.

"That must be your brother Knives," Meryl said, biting her lip.

"Yeah. I'm sorry. I was really surprised he acted that way; he's got amnesia and it seemed like he had no emotions up until this point," said Vash with a glance at the living room door.

"You've got a lot of explaining to do," Meryl said with a light smirk at Vash.

"I know." Wolfwood and Milly finally returned with the medical supplies.

Now to thank my reviewers had to wait a freakin' month because of my slowness…

Makya: Glad you enjoy it! Um, can't leave Knives in the shack, but we'll keep him there for awhile, ne? ^-^

Samara R: Yay! One person my plotless story doesn't bother! Yipee!

Chu-Chu13: Thank ya much! I'll keep going!

crystal-chan: Thanks for the compliment! Knives, get your butt back here! She deserves a hug darn it!

im vash at socom on aim: FYI, I am beautiful! ^_^ Anywho, here's exactly what you wanted with another on the way 'K?

Ryla: I'm so happy! YAY! You made me feel so much better, because I thought the way I had things happen was kinda ridiculous and stupid, but I'm better now! Please review again!

Thanx to everyone! C-ya!


	6. Ending the Present

What's goin' on people? Welcome to chapter 6, finally! It only took me over a month to get typed up, no big deal.. I'm really sorry it's taken me so long, and I'm tired of making the same excuses to you people so I'll just try my best to do better. I've finally decided that this story will be around 10-15 chapters. My next project? Either FLCL, another Trigun, or maybe a Kenshin fic, I can't decide. Ah well. Enjoy!  
  
Liquid Sunlight  
  
Chapter 6- Ending the Present  
  
BANG! "Vash, what the hell are you doing?!" Meryl looked as though she could kill him even with her left arm still in a sling. She glared at him and Vash fought the urge to shiver under the death stare.  
  
He opened one eye. "Well, I was sleeping until you kicked my door open like you're going to hurt me. You aren't are you?"  
  
"I won't if you get off your lazy butt! If you can't get a job, the least you can do is help out with some household chores!" She gave him another evil glare and he cowered under the covers. "Bernardelli may be paying for us to live here while chasing after you, but the money won't cover five people and Milly and Wolfwood are the only ones working! We need to get things done around here if we want to eat!" She stormed out. BANG!  
  
"Geez," Vash muttered, "not being able to work is really getting to her." He slid out of bed and headed to the bathroom where he quickly showered and dressed.  
  
Luckily, the new house they were living in included two bathrooms along with enough rooms for the newcomers. Being able to just walk into the bathroom and not have to wait was a wonderful experience.  
  
As he headed to the kitchen, Vash heard the clinking of china and the swish of running water through the open door. He sighed and shook his head.  
  
'She's at it again', he thought.  
  
Sure enough, Meryl stood before the sink, humming gently. Her arm was out of the sling and she was gingerly using it to hold dishes while she washed with her other hand.  
  
"What are you doing?" asked Vash in an accusing voice. Meryl dropped the plate with a splash and whirled on him.  
  
"You're washing dishes again," Vash said, wagging his finger at her. "Milly said no stress on the wounds remember? I'm gonna te-ell."  
  
"I'm fine," Meryl protested. She turned back to the sink and said, "You're not my mother, and no you won't tell Milly either! It doesn't hurt. a lot."  
  
"You should take care of yourself," Vash said. His voice became suddenly serious and Meryl looked up at him, startled. However he was giving her the same goofy look as always.  
  
"I definitely don't want to hear that from you Tongari," she said angrily. She picked up another dish as Vash sighed and gave up. His demeanor changed back to the goofiness as suddenly as he had become serious.  
  
"What are my orders ma'am?" he said with a salute. Meryl rolled her eyes and pointed out the door.  
  
"Since you decided to break the washer, you can go out back and do the laundry for everyone," she said.  
  
"Ah man," Vash sighed, dragging his feet toward the door. He hated laundry.  
  
"Vash," Meryl called after him. He turned around in time to catch a couple donuts. "Breakfast," she said with a smile. Vash waved.  
  
"Thanks!" he called back, rushing to the tub. 'Now I really wish I hadn't broken the washing machine,' he thought scornfully as he rolled up his sleeves.  
  
Meryl looked up from the dishes as Vash started to wash his first item, one of his shirts. She laughed as he steeled himself for his least favorite tasks. He scrubbed the shirt with a vengeance, almost as though it caused all his problems. Vash looked up at her with that adorable confused look on his face, and then scowled at her as he realized why she was laughing.  
  
'No one would know that he is the 60 billion double dollar man if they just passed by and watched that goofball,' Meryl thought to herself. He looked so adorable. Meryl shook her head forcefully and picked up a bowl. What in the world was she thinking?  
  
"May I help you?" Meryl glanced behind her to see Knives standing behind her.  
  
"Oh, good morning Knives!" she said with a smile he didn't return. "Uh, I think I've got it here, but you can help Vash with the laundry. If you want."  
  
"Alright." Without another word, he opened the door and walked out.  
  
"SO weird," Meryl muttered to herself. Knives' memory hadn't improved at all; he couldn't remember a thing about his past except Rem. The only person he'd listen to was Meryl, and he despised being around Milly and Wolfwood. Meryl quickly rinsed the bowl and moved on to another plate.  
  
Outside, Vash had just finished up on a pair of Milly's pants and throwing the tub an evil glare. Knives sighed at his brother's ignorance before rolling up his sleeves and grabbing a sheet from the tub. Vash looked at him in surprise.  
  
"I must have asked you a thousand times before to help me with the laundry and you never did!" he cried as Knives continued to calmly wash the sheet. "What made you decide to help now?"  
  
"Meryl asked me to," Knives simply stated. Vash's face contorted in anger and hurt.  
  
"What?! Why do you always listen to the Small Girl over your own twin brother?" Vash whined.  
  
"Because you're my younger twin brother," Knives retorted, getting as close to teasing as he could. Vash glared at him.  
  
"Are you two almost done? Vash, you've been washing the same thing over and over the entire time Knives has been out here," Meryl said with a scowl. She was walking from the house to check on them.  
  
"I am?" he looked down at the garment and his eyes widened in surprise. Before he could say anything or even blush, Meryl spotted what he had in his hands.  
  
"VASH! You pervert!" she yelled in embarrassment and anger. The article of clothing that Vash had worked so hard on was a pair of Meryl's white unmentionables.  
  
"Oh, ah, I." Now Vash was blushing; he was bright red to the roots of his blond hair. WHACK! Meryl stormed back into the house, leaving Vash twitching on the ground. Knives caught a glimpse of Meryl's flushed face as she slammed the door.  
  
"What did you do now Tongari?" Vash rolled over and stood to face Wolfwood, who had his trademark dark sunglasses on. Knives was glaring at him with distaste.  
  
"Uh. nothing. What are you doing? Aren't supposed to be working?" Vash asked rejoining Knives at the tub.  
  
"Day off," Wolfwood replied. His rocking back and forth was really getting on Vash's nerves.  
  
"What the hell is wrong with you?!"  
  
"I. I-I quit smoking. Cold turkey." Wolfwood resumed his rocking and bouncing as Vash gaped at him. "I feel terrible but Milly asked me to so."  
  
"What?" Meryl screeched, coming out of the house to pounce on the priest. "You told me you quit two and half months ago when you came back home and found out Milly was pregnant! You-"  
  
"Actually," Wolfwood said sheepishly, "I did quit smoking: around Milly."  
  
Meryl balled her good hand up and to a fist, which she shook angrily in Wolfwood's direction. "I can't believe it! I should have known you were sneaking off to smoke!" She took a big step forward and Wolfwood took a bigger one back. He had his hands up, ready to defend himself when a smooth voice cut across Meryl's screeches.  
  
"We are finished here. What else needs to be done Meryl?" Wolfwood sent Knives a grateful gaze that he totally ignored.  
  
"Oh, um," Meryl stuttered out, caught off guard in the middle of her fury. "Well just. uh. the sweeping! All the rooms need a good sweeping if you wanna do that."  
  
"Okay." Knives silently pushed the door open.  
  
When Meryl turned around, Wolfwood was nowhere to be seen. "That's all right!" she shouted. "You gotta come home sometime." Behind her, Vash tried his best to sneak away.  
  
'If I can get around the corner of the house, I can catch up with Wolfwood and make him buy!' Vash thought. 'A little farther.." He was viciously jerked back by his collar just as he thought escape was imminent.  
  
"And just where do you think you're going?" Meryl's tone clearly said, "don't mess with me."  
  
"Uh, to help sweep the house?" Vash suggested.  
  
"Oh how thoughtful," Meryl said, tightening her grip. "C'mon, in the house." Vash allowed himself to be drug into the house.  
  
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _  
  
Inside, Knives had finished sweeping the kitchen and living room. He hesitated slightly before pushing the door to Meryl's room open and entering stealthily.  
  
Whenever he saw Meryl, Knives was forcibly reminded of the woman Rem. The figure haunted his dreams ever since the sudden flash of memory when he first saw Meryl.  
  
The heavy guilt that fell on his stomach whenever he thought of either woman was a mystery to him. But he was always nice to Meryl and did exactly what she said, even though he hated the work.  
  
Knives remembered Meryl instructing Vash how to sweep a room, which included sweeping out the closet. Spiderwebs had gathered in each corner. He enjoyed brushing out the webs and killing the spiders, although he wasn't sure why this was his favorite part.  
  
Almost done, Knives gave the closet a last good swipe with the broom and dislodged a shiny heavy object from the top of Meryl's closet. It hit the floor with a dull thump and lay shining in the sun.  
  
Setting the broom aside, Knives crouched down to pick the object up. The steel felt cool on his fingertips. The big silver gun looked familiar, but from where?  
  
Suddenly, anger surged through Knives' body, causing him to stiffen and the gun hit the floor again. A brief vision passed before his eyes.  
  
FLASH! Vash sat on the ground before him, Angel Arm at the ready and pointed straight at him.  
  
"You're aiming at me?!" he heard his own angry voice shout. "You're aiming at me AGAIN?!" FLASH!  
  
Knives stood dumbstruck and drenched in cold sweat. He had no idea what the vision meant - maybe a memory?  
  
Footsteps coming down the hallway interrupted his thoughts. Knives quickly grabbed the six-shooter and stuffed it back into the closet. He shut the door and picked up the broom, trying his best to control his shaking and act normal.  
  
Meryl poked her head in with a smile. "Are you all right Knives? Doing okay?"  
  
"I'm fine," he answered, not meeting her eyes. "I've finished in here." He tried to head for his and Vash's room across the hall, but Meryl stopped him and removed the broom from his grasp and handed it to Vash, who was sulking behind her. "You're all sweaty. Are you sure you're okay?"  
  
Knives grunted and went into the kitchen. Meryl looked at Vash who shrugged.  
  
This isn't where I planned on ending the chapter, but it's too late, so next update you'll get a short chapter and a long chapter, yay! Thanks to my reviewers, who have become too numerous to recognize. But to magic, if I make a few grammar mistakes, they are usually intentional. I don't exactly follow the MLA handbook, so please excuse my wordings and sentence structure. On another note, if anyone knows where I can get Trigun manga or find out about Trigun Maximum, please mail me! I love you guys! 


	7. Hourglass

Okay, okay, I KNOW it's been three months since I last updated this story but I had the worst case of writer's block and tried to cure it with a quick Bebop fanfic, which now rots as well. Sigh. Darn my inability to take time to post! All righty, well, I've totally revamped my rough draft of this story by throwing it out and starting anew. Hopefully it'll seem less awkward now! Here we go, chapter 7!

Liquid Sunlight

Chapter 7 - Hourglass

It was the happiest moment of Milly's life; well, so far at least.

In mock chivalry, Wolfwood pulled the door to the restaurant open and gave her a grin. Milly suppressed a giggle and tried to enter in a stately manner, but ended up nearly tripping over her own feet. Meryl rolled her eyes, and behind her Vash practically drug Knives into the small-town eatery. It was no different from any other day, except that Milly was headed home for the first time in a long time, and her happiness was contagious.

After much discussion, Milly had convinced Wolfwood to have the marriage ceremony in her hometown of Sand, instead of the little town they had been living in. Naturally, Vash followed, taking Knives with him, and Meryl wasn't far behind. 

"I can't believe I'm going home!" Milly exclaimed while slowly lowering herself into a chair. "I haven't seen mom and dad and my brothers and sisters in forever." She poked Meryl in the shoulder. "And they haven't seen you since we were teenagers, just starting at Bernardelli." Meryl gave her a weak grin and thought, 'I wonder what they'll think of me now…' She glanced out the window at the blood red sunset.

"So, nervous about meeting the parents?" Vash teased Wolfwood. Knives grimaced at him, but he still continued, ignoring his brother. "I mean you DID kinda knock her-" 

"VASH!" 

"Ow, Meryl, that hurt!"

"I'm glad!" Vash pouted at her while his brother sent him death glares.

"Oh, they already know." Milly dug into her pudding, unaware of the shocked stares she was getting.

"Um, Milly?" Meryl's voice quaked.

"Yeah?"

"Your dad's nicer than most, but don't you think that kind of news would make him kinda…"

"Infuriated?" Vash supplied. Wolfwood let out a noise between a gargle and a squeak.

"NOT what I was going to say!" Meryl shot back at him.

"Well, I just thought I'd help," Vash whined.

"Oh, everyone's fine with it!" Milly said. "Dad understands the… the circumstances, you know, with everything that happened."

Wolfwood sighed. "Well that's good." He returned to his dinner.

The waitress came over to their table to check on them. "Can I get you folks some drinks?" she asked sweetly.

"Not for me!" Milly gave her stomach a rub.

"Well then, I guess it makes me, Wolfwood, Knives, and the Small Girl then!" Vash cheered.

"What?! I don't think so!" Meryl shook her head vigorously.

"You don't wanna do that Mr. Vash," Milly said. "Meryl's worse than me when it comes to holding down the strong stuff."

"I am not!" Meryl cried, outraged.

"You are so," Milly contradicted. "Usually one drink makes you pretty tipsy!" At Meryl's angry gaze she added, "But it's only because you're so small, that's why!"

"So THAT'S why you never drank with us before!" Wolfwood said. "I was wondering why you would never-"

"Okay, so I'm short and I'm not able to drink that much! Get off my back you idiots!" Meryl screeched.

"Settle!" Wolfwood said. "Vash was just kidding! Geez…"

Meryl crossed her arms. Milly said cheerfully, "We'd better get back on the bus soon! They might leave without us!" She scraped the bottom of her pudding bowl and slowly stood up. Wolfwood gently took her arm and led her out, with the other three trailing behind.

"Look Meryl, I didn't mean to make you mad," Vash said, scratching the back of his head. She scowled up at him and he jumped back. "I really didn't, honest!"

Meryl sighed. "Fine, I forgive you. Okay?"

Vash pumped his fist into the air, making Meryl grin in spite of herself. "Idiot," Knives muttered to himself.

"You're just in time!" the bus driver shouted. "We were getting ready to take off!"

"Told ya so!" Milly exclaimed with a smile. They climbed on and took seats near the back. Milly settled herself against Wolfwood to sleep. Knives stretched his long legs across an entire seat, and Meryl sat stiffly next to Vash, who had taken the window seat. She squirmed around, trying to find a comfortable spot, until she heard Vash chuckle.

"What?" she snapped whirling on him.

He stared down at her with his gorgeous aquamarine eyes. "You just look so uncomfortable," he said simply. "If you wanna lean against me, all you gotta do is ask."

"Gah! Who said I wanted to do that?!" Meryl exclaimed, her cheeks very flushed. Wolfwood, in the seat in front of them, cracked a grin. Vash chuckled again as the moon rose, casting slanting beams onto Meryl's face.

"I didn't say you wanted to, I just thought it would be more comfortable," he explained with that stupid grin on his face. Now he was becoming embarrassed.

"Well, no thank you," Meryl said stiffly, shifting her tiny body again. Vash sighed and settled himself against the cool window. It would have been nice to feel Meryl's warmth against him… 'Bad thoughts! Bad thoughts!'

'Is he… disappointed?' Meryl wondered. Vash's eyes were closed when she looked over on his angelic face. The moonlight made him look paler than he did in the sun, and he looked a little childish to her. 'The infamous outlaw,' she laughed to herself. She inhaled deeply; he smelled wonderful. The folds of his jacket looked inviting. She remembered the day she'd given him the jacket back, mended and cleaned.

~FLASHBACK~

"Vash? Can I talk to you for a second?" Meryl asked nervously.

"Sure!" Vash looked up from his card game and waited for her to speak.

"I mean in the other room." Now confused, Vash climbed to his feet and followed her into her room.

"I- I should have given this to you when you first got back, but I just didn't know…" She faltered and looked at the floor.

"Meryl, what's wrong?" Silence. "You can tell me, no matter what it is."

She looked up at him and felt a little braver when she saw the look of concern on his face. She crossed the room and threw the doors to her closet open and pulled out a wad of red fabric. Vash's eyes widened in recognition. 

"Wolfwood found it in the desert," Meryl explained. "He gave it to me the day you came back, but never told me you were actually here." Her eyes brimmed with tears. "There were bullet holes in it and it was covered in blood; I was so scared. I thought you might've…" She cleared her throat and tried to wipe her eyes while Vash still stared in disbelief. "I mended it, but I didn't know if you wanted it back, if the memories were too painful…"

"Meryl," Vash managed to croak out, "did Wolfwood find my gun?" 

She bit her lip. "Yes."

"And has Knives seen either the gun or the coat?"

"I don't know. He might have the day he was cleaning, but I couldn't say for sure." Vash sank down on the bed with his head in his hands.

"God," he whispered. "I hope he didn't remember anything." Meryl sat down beside him, now worried.

"I don't think he remembers anything… about what happened," she said soothingly. She was shocked when Vash looked up with tears in his eyes.

"Meryl, if he remembers and reassembles the Gung Ho Guns, I have to go after him again. And more innocent people will be killed. I just can't take anymore bloodshed!" The tears continued to run down his face and he shivered. "He needs another chance. He can be different**;** reform. I know it! But if his memories come back, I don't know what's going to happen."

"Oh Vash." Meryl opened her arms, and after a slight hesitation, Vash threw himself into them. She rocked him gently, his head in between her neck and shoulder. His tears trickled down onto her shirt, but she paid them no mind. This was right; it was what she should be doing. What she should have been doing after he saved her and Milly by killing Legato. That day, she'd felt helpless, like she couldn't do anything for him. As the sunlight sparkled in his golden hair, she realized that all he needed was her presence, her reassurance, and someone's shoulder to cry on.

"Meryl."

"Hmm?"

"Thank you." He felt her stiffen at his words, her arms tensing as though she were afraid of what he was going to say. He sat up and placed his hands on her shoulders. Her unfaltering gaze met his, and Vash gave a teary smile. "I'll take the jacket. But keep the gun. And keep it hidden, okay?" Meryl nodded, and Vash did something he only dreamed about: he gave her a small kiss on the top of the head. He picked up the red jacket and walked out, leaving a stunned Meryl behind him.

~END FLASHBACK~

Just the thought of that tender moment was enough to make Meryl blush. Vash had begun to wear the jacket every now and then, after making sure it didn't trigger anything in Knives' memory. He'd worn it on the trip because, as he'd joked, "it's good for traveling." She searched the peaceful face for any hint of the suffering he'd endured, or a trace of the worry that had to be on his mind.

"Would you mind not staring at me?" Meryl jumped like she'd been burned as Vash spoke and opened one beautiful eye.

"I wasn't staring at you!" Meryl protested. "I was- I was- trying to look out the window if you must know!" She scooted as far away from him as possible and turned away. Vash sighed again and tried to get back to sleep. He loved that look of surprise in Meryl's violet-gray eyes, and he loved to tease her until she got into a fury. He grinned to himself. 

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 

The next morning, the five travelers were awakened by the screech of the bus brakes and the shaking motion that accompanied it. Vash ran a hand through his hair before noticing the small bundle of warmth against him. Meryl. He'd had to practically drag her over to him so she could get some sleep. But once he got her to lean on him, she'd certainly made herself comfortable. Her eyes opened and she muttered a groggy "good morning."

"Good morning," Vash replied, grinning. "This is our stop!" Meryl pulled away from him, a little flustered, and grabbed her bag. Knives threw her a quick glance before gathering his things. 

"Why do you keep looking at Meryl like that, Knives? You got the hots for the Small Girl?" Wolfwood teased as Meryl took off down the aisle. 

"Actually, I don't, but it's none of your damn business anyways!" Knives growled.

"Touchy, touchy!" Wolfwood smirked at him as Milly punched him in the arm.

"He's just playing Mr. Knives," she said sweetly. Knives grunted and headed towards the exit.

"He's still not very sociable, huh?" Vash sighed. "And the only person he'll listen to is the Small Girl!"

"Ah well, I suppose somebody's gotta," Wolfwood said. Milly tried to stifle her giggles.

Vash was the last one off the bus. The sunlight blinded him as he ducked to go through the doorway, and he nearly tripped on his way down the steps. When his eyes cleared, he saw what looked like the Thompson family reunion going on in the bus station. Milly was in the arms of a woman who must have been her mother, with all sorts of children hovering around her. Wolfwood nervously shook hands with a bear-like man who was probably Milly's father. Several other family members had leapt upon Meryl and were taking turns squeezing the daylights out of her.

"Oh!" Milly cried out, disentangling herself from her mother's arms. "Hey everybody! Be quiet for a minute!" Twenty or so brown heads turned her way. "Thanks!" She pointed at Vash. "This is Mr. Vash, the man I told you we were following. And this is his brother, Mr. Knives!"

Before he knew it, Vash and his twin were swept into the crowd, Knives protesting the whole way and fighting the arms and hands. Vash shook so many hands he thought that his brain had somehow been jarred. Knives had managed to escape early in the game and he slunk away, into a saloon.

"C'mon everyone!" called Mrs. Thompson. "Let's take this to the house! I've got food ready, and I'm sure Uncle Ted can't wait to show us all how to dance!" There was a great cheer and Vash was dragged along in the crowd, eventually coming to rest beside Meryl.

"Are they always this cheerful?" he asked as he was shoved from behind.

"No," Meryl said. "They're always cheerful, but they're excited about Milly getting married. I guess you could say she's a family favorite." Vash grinned down at her.

After dinner, Milly's mother and aunts cleaned up the kitchen as her father and the other men took the kids into the living room to look at pictures.

"Look at this one!" crowed Milly's father. It featured a three year-old Milly, covered from head to foot in peanut butter. They went through a huge stack of pictures that chronicled the lives of all the Thompson children. Vash daydreamed a little and tried (unsuccessfully) to not look distant, but eventually the conversation caught his attention.

"Here's one of Meryl, when she and Milly first met!" Mr. Thompson sighed. "Fresh out of high school and headed off to work in the city." He passed the photo along.

Meryl laughed. "I remember you made me stay here for almost a week until you thought I'd be a good influence on Milly!" Laughter filled the room.

When the picture came to Vash, he did a double take. This was Meryl?! The girl in the picture had long, dark hair that flowed to her slim waist. Her big violet-gray eyes shone and she had a huge smile on her face. Beside her, Milly, looking mostly the same, grinned and slung her arm around Meryl's shoulders. What a difference a few years could make! Vash mused to himself.

Later, the dancing began and Uncle Ted certainly showed them all how to do it right. Milly was grabbed up by her father as Wolfwood watched from the table. Meryl sipped on a drink as she observed the dancers.

"Having a good time?" 

She smiled up at Vash. "Actually, I really am. I haven't felt this great since the last time I was here, what with work and being so stressed out and everything…" she trailed off, realizing she'd just given a little bit more of herself away to Vash.

"Hmm." Vash looked thoughtful. "I guess the Thompsons have that kind of effect on people." Meryl shrugged as Vash looked skyward. "The stars look beautiful tonight," he ventured.

"Yeah," Meryl said breathlessly. "It makes the town look a lot less gloomy and dry when you look at it under the light of the stars and the moon."

Vash glanced down at her. "Very poetic."

"Shut the hell up Tongari."

"Is that the end of the poem?"

"No, but it might become a murder novel if you don't be quiet." Vash grinned and took a step closer to her, just to annoy her a little bit more.

Okay kiddies, thanks to my 44 reviewers (you guys rock!) and thanks to those who are enjoying this story and letting me know! I'm gonna try to finish this fic up in 3 to 4 chapters, possibly within the next 2 weeks. But unless I get up to 60 reviews, I'm gonna take this story off and possibly try a different concept. You the reader decide the fate! Review to keep the fluff alive! But I'm not paying any dentist bills! I love you guys!


	8. White Battle

Hey hey hey!!! I finally managed to get some time to write! I took my AP Chemistry test and I'm sure you're ALL happy to know that I am so not gonna have to take freshmen chemistry in college!!!! Exciting, no? Anywho, I didn't get the sixty reviews I wanted (twitch, twitch), but I may as well finish this baby. But you guys have to let me know what you want to see in this fic. I live to serve you!!!! ……….. At least for a while. So here it comes, Chapter 8!!! Please R and R and give your opinions!!!

Liquid Sunlight

Chapter 8 - White Battle

Milly had always been an early riser, so it didn't surprise her when she woke up to a storm of snores reverberating through the room. With a smile, she rubbed her eyes and looked around the room at the piles of her female relatives in sleeping bags on the floor. Across the room, Meryl lay in the other bed, an arm wrapped protectively around Milly's youngest sister, Molly. The rising sun cast a reddish hue on both of their faces. Everything was so peaceful…. Milly sighed and lay back on her pillow.

"MILLY!!!! MERYL!!!!!" Both girls shot out of bed and ran to the door. Meryl's fingers had just touched the cool brass doorknob when… BANG!!! Mrs. Thompson threw the door open, effectively smashing Meryl behind it. Milly cast a concerned look towards Meryl before her mother drew her into her arms.

"Milly, darling!" she cried. "We've got sooooooooooo much to do today!!!"

"Ummmmm, what?" Wolfwood appeared at the door with a smirk, which quickly turned to a dark blush as the other girls screamed and pulled their blankets over their pajamas. Molly jumped down from the bed and chased after him.

Milly's mother gave her a little shake. "We have to get ready for your wedding of course! I just can't believe my darling daughter is going to be a wife!" She gave Milly an extra-tight squeeze.

"But mother, the wedding isn't for a week-"

Mrs. Thompson shook her head. "We had to move it forward because everyone has to leave sooner than they thought. Your cousin Bethany is expecting her baby anytime now!"

"Oh my!" Milly squealed. "That's wonderful!" She rubbed her own tummy and smiled radiantly.

"Well come on then! Let's get you some breakfast and get ready! There's SO much to do!" She grabbed Milly's wrist and drug her down the hallway. The girls roused themselves and quickly took off after her, all chattering about the impending wedding and debating whether or not Wolfwood would flee before everything was ready.

When the giggling had died away, Meryl pushed the door off herself and rubbed her head. "Owwwww……. Milly's mom is just a little overenthusiastic…" Dizzy, she threw herself down in front of Milly's vanity. She gave a scowl to her unkempt reflection and started to brush the tangles from her hair.

'Man, Milly is going to be a beautiful bride,' Meryl thought with a little smile. She could picture her, bright and smiling, all ready for her big day. She was going to wear her mother's wedding dress, which had to be elongated a little to accommodate Milly's height. Milly had already commissioned Meryl to arrange her hair and veil, and her father had even managed to import a few real flowers from a faraway town called Rayne. Meryl sighed. The whole thing was going to be gorgeous.

Of course, Meryl had already screwed up part of the plan. Because of her, Milly couldn't have the bride's maid dresses she wanted…

A knock at the door vaguely interrupted Meryl's thoughts. "Come in," she called automatically.

She pulled at the shoulder of her nightdress, revealing the ugly red scar from when she was shot, preventing the bank robbery. The thing still hurt her sometimes, aching so bad she had to grit her teeth to keep from crying out.

Milly had wanted her bride's maids to wear strapless dresses with huge skirts, each a different color of the rainbow. Meryl was supposed to be blue, until Milly saw her in the dress and remembered the injury. She acted like the style of the dresses didn't matter to her, just for Meryl's sake, but Meryl felt terrible for ruining the plans.

Someone clearing their throat brought Meryl out of her reverie. She swung around to meet Vash's aquamarine eyes and gasped, quickly clasping her legs together in the short nightdress. "Vash! What the hell are you doing in here?!"

To his credit, Vash turned around so fast he dripped coffee all over the floor. "You said it was okay, and I brought you coffee before it was all gone. You already missed breakfast." He snuck a peek over his shoulder.

Meryl heaved a sigh. "Fine. You can turn around you big idiot." Vash obliged, giving her the coffee and a grin. He touched his cup to hers, then sat on the bed.

"So, umm… what's wrong?"

"Why would anything be wrong?" Meryl snapped back as she dug through her suitcase.

"You're worried that you ruined Milly's wedding."

She whirled on him. "Who told you that?"

"She did." Meryl snorted and turned back to the suitcase. "So you're saying I'm right?"

"The day I say you're right is the day the world ends, Tongari." Vash was silent.

Meryl had picked out a clean shirt and skirt and stood up when his rough hand fell on her shoulder and turned her to face him. Gently, his hand went to the shoulder of her nightdress, and peeled it away from the scar. Meryl tried to pull away, but couldn't move Vash's gentle hands.

"Stop," she whimpered.

"Ssshhh…" He traced it with his fingertips, careful not to hurt her. "It's okay Meryl…" She glanced up at him, feeling the tears rush to her eyes.

'Oh god, I'm not gonna cry in front of him! No way….' she thought desperately.

Vash's other hand started to snake its way to her waist…

"I'm not interrupting anything, am I?" Meryl and Vash leapt apart as Wolfwood, his smirk returned, grinned at them from the doorway. Vash scratched the back of his head and laughed sheepishly while Meryl fumed. "'Cause if I was, I can you two a little more time alone to-"

"BOTH OF YOU GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE!!!" Wolfwood and Vash landed in a tangled pile in the hallway. The door shut with a shotgun's report as Milly came down the hallway.

"Boys, are you almost ready… to… go…?" She looked down at the two men. "What happened to you guys?"

"I walked in on Vash putting the moves on the Small Girl-"

"I was not!"

"And she got majorly pissed and threw us both out."

Milly sighed. "Darling, you really shouldn't go in without knocking first. And it's about time Mr. Vash!"

"But I wasn't really!" Vash protested. "She still thinks she screwed up your wedding and I was just being nice!"

"Bull sh-"

"OH!!! She still feels bad about that? I'll go talk to her!" Milly rushed past them.

Wolfwood climbed to his feet and looked down at Vash. "And where's that psychotic brother of yours anyways? Haven't seen him since yesterday."

Vash gave a shrug. "Dunno. I guess this was just too much family togetherness kinda stuff for him. He probably checked into an inn with the money he stole from me." Vash reached out for a hand up.

"Talk about brotherly love." Wolfwood ignored Vash's outstretched hand and walked off.

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The next few days passed by in a flurry of preparations. Mrs. Thompson and the other women worked night and day to prepare a feast for the family and to get all the girls outfitted with dresses. Mr. Thompson enlisted the men, including Vash and Wolfwood, to make repairs on the dilapidated church and the Thompsons' old car, a wedding gift from Milly's parents. In the days before the wedding, Meryl carefully avoided Vash whenever possible.

Finally, the battle was won. Meryl gave Milly a final look-over after finishing her hair and began to tear up; she was every bit as beautiful as Meryl had imagined. Milly, shocked, embraced her friend.

"Oh, Meryl, you're crying!"

"Well I am human you know!" Meryl sniffed and wiped her eyes.

"Wow, Milly!" Vash leaned against the doorframe. He walked over and twirled her around. "You look awesome!" Milly giggled. "Meryl, will come double-check Wolfwood?" Vash pleaded.

"Go on Meryl," Milly said cheerfully. "I'm all ready here! Make sure he looks good!" Meryl smiled weakly and brushed at her eyes again.

As they exited the room, Vash took up Meryl's arm and led her across the church. "You know," he said thoughtfully, "you don't look so bad yourself, Small Girl."

"What did I tell you about calling me that?!" Meryl blushed despite herself.

"Sorry…"

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"… forever and ever, as long as you both shall live?" The priest's wavering voice was really beginning to annoy Wolfwood, who was anxious for the end.

"I do!" Milly smiled at him, and he returned the gesture.

"Bring the rings," the priest commanded. Molly stepped forward, and placed a thin golden band into Wolfwood's hand. He took Milly's hand and slipped it onto her finger. Molly handed Milly the other ring and she placed it on the wrong finger. To a little chuckling from the guests, she quickly removed it and put it on its proper finger with an embarrassed laugh.

"By the powers vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride young man." Milly shot Wolfwood a warning look before he drew her into a church-appropriate kiss. Milly's family exploded into applause, and Vash whistled his approval.

Meryl tried to clap and wipe her tears at the same time as the bride and groom led the way out of the church and back to the Thompsons' house for food and dancing. Vash appeared at her side and took her arm again, but this time, she didn't try to pull away. He smiled down at her.

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"Goodbye! Have a wonderful honeymoon!" Meryl called after the disappearing car. Milly turned all the way around to wave back at her family and friends and nearly fell out.

Soon, all that could be seen was a cloud of dust. Meryl glanced up at the two suns. Their combined light seemed thick enough for her to catch in a jar, and hold onto to remember this day. She ran her hand through the sunlight, feeling the warmth spread through her body.

Vash and Mrs. Thompson walked up to her. "You're not leaving yet, are you dear?" Mrs. Thompson asked. Vash handed her a crumpled piece of paper, addressed to M. Stryfe.

"What in the world?" Meryl muttered as she tore it open.

M.,

Traveling. See you when I see you.

K.

"Short and terse." She looked up at Vash. "So, where to?"

"Huh?"

"I'm the one following you, remember? Keeping the $$60 billion man under control. That's my job. But also… I wanna help you find him Vash."

"R-really?" Meryl nodded. "Okay! Then I'd say west!"

"Why west?"

Vash shrugged. "No reason really." Meryl fell to the ground.

"Well, let's just go! You can ride Milly's Tomas."

Vash raised his hand, and felt the warmth flow between his fingers. 'Wherever you are Knives, I just hope you don't remember…. Anything…'

Ta-da! Another chapter done (finally!) I'm not gonna promise another chapter before the weekend 'cause most likely that isn't going to happen. But I will sit myself down Saturday and get the next chapter up, which will finally include a plot and not just random fluff! I'm finally getting into this story. Thanks to all of my reviewers; I won't let you guys down!!! Um, if anyone else knows how to keep an indented first paragraph without going into quick edit and fixing it with WordPerfect, the knowledge would be greatly appreciated. I love you all!


	9. Heartstrings

Hey everyone. I know I promised a chapter on Saturday, but……. I lied. Sorry guys, but I was really busy this entire weekend! Begs and grovels at the readers' feet But a day off from school means a little writing time!!! A couple people asked for it, so I decided to write a little Milly and Wolfwood honeymoon fluffiness. Don't blame me if you get cavities!!! Here's the next chapter! Enjoy!

Liquid Sunlight

Chapter 9 - Heartstrings

Wolfwood sighed. Today marked the beginning of the rest of his life, one he would spend by Milly's side, no matter what. He wrapped one arm around her shoulders as they watched the suns set from the car. She smiled and snuggled into him. He slowed down, allowing them to enjoy the last moments of their first day as husband and wife.

"I know," she began tentatively, "I know this honeymoon isn't going to be… umm… the kind of fun… it would normally be for you or anything because of…" She gave her tummy a rub and giggled nervously. Wolfwood slowed the car and finally brought it to a halt. Milly watched the horizon, the twin suns losing their glaring yellow light in favor of a soft red glow.

"Milly, honey, that doesn't matter to me at all." He drew her closer. "I mean, it's not like we haven't been together before anyways…" She gave him a quick punch to the arm. "Ow!"

"Serves you right darling," she cooed with a grin. Wolfwood drew her into a breathtaking kiss. Milly smiled into his lips and delved deeper, feeling like their souls were merging within the kiss. When they drew apart, breathing heavily, Wolfwood placed his forehead against hers, staring deep into Milly's eyes, seeing her love for him there.

"Nicholas, I can't wait until our child is born…"

"Me either honey. Me either."

(A/N - Don't worry W/M lovers, they'll be back in this chapter, I just couldn't think of anything else…. )

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"Guess we should stop and eat lunch," Vash called to Meryl after glancing up at the sky.

"It's too hot for the Tomases anyway," Meryl agreed. "They could use a rest." She gave her mount a pat on the head before turning to follow Vash towards the under-hanging of a cliff. When they got under the blissfully cool shade, Vash threw himself to the ground and sighed.

"Here." Meryl tossed him a water bottle. He gave her a grateful smile before taking a drink. After giving the Tomases their water, Meryl sat down with her back against the cliff wall.

"The town's probably only a couple of iles away from here," Vash said. He handed her the bottle.

"Yeah." Meryl hesitated before taking a drink.

"So…." Vash scratched his head, trying to restart the conversation.

"So?" Meryl gave him a skeptical glance.

"So… ummm… Milly's baby!" He snapped his fingers. "Boy or girl?"

"I dunno. I think it's a girl."

"How come?"

Meryl grinned evilly. "I can't reveal my sources."

"AAWWW! Come on Meryl!!!"

"If I told you-" she took out a derringer "-I'd have to kill you. Then what would all the bounty hunters have to do? Although it'd certainly be a weight lifted from my shoulders." She laughed.

"Do- do you really mean that?" Meryl looked over at Vash. He had an unusual frown on his face. "I mean yeah, I cause a lot of trouble and you'd probably be better off without me to look over, but still-"

"I was joking Vash!" Meryl snapped. "You don't have to be so touchy!" She grabbed the reins of her Tomas and gave a pull. The animal wouldn't budge. Meryl gave a mighty yank; the reins broke and she tumbled out into the sunlight.

Vash was at her side in a moment. "Are you okay?" He reached down to help her up.

"Yeah, yeah," Meryl muttered reaching up. But at that moment…

"Ha ha HA!" Vash doubled over with laughter, much to Meryl's disgust. "Oh god, the look on your face!!!" Vash crowed out, tears running down his face.

WHAP!

After dispatching the notorious gunman, Vash the Stampede, Meryl returned to the shade and unpacked the picnic lunch Milly's mom had insisted on making for them. She threw Vash a death glare and tossed the donuts over her shoulder.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! Meryl, you're so cruel!!!"

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"Darling, are we almost there yet?"

"Almost honey."

"That's good. The first thing I'm gonna do is get some pudding. Mint pistachio pudding!!!"

"Sounds… good."

"Ooh! I can see the town from here! Wow, that's a deep valley."

"Yeah. I bet the plant here works double-hard."

"Do you think they'll have min- STOP!!!!"

With screeching brakes, the car slid to a stop not a foot away from Knives.

"Whatcha doin' out here Mr. Knives?" Milly called over the windshield. "I bet Mr. Vash and Meryl are real worried about you. Unless they're here…."

'Oh god…' Wolfwood thought. 'I thought I made it perfectly clear to that idiot that we were going to have alone time or else…'

--FLASHBACK--

"So where you guys headed for the big honeymoon?" Vash asked as Wolfwood examined the motor of the car.

"I'll tell you on one condition." Wolfwood blew out a stream of smoke.

"What's that?"

"You and the Small Girl stay far far away."

"What?" Vash tried to look hurt. "That offends me, it really does!" He grabbed hold of Wolfwood's jacket. "I thought you were my brother, my fellow advocate of LOVE AND PEACE!!!!!" Wolfwood calmly smacked Vash in the back of the head with a wrench.

"Ow, he's gonna feel that one in the morning," commented one of Milly's numerous cousins.

"What the hell was that for?" Vash whined.

"That's just a taster of the consequences. I want time alone with Milly. If you show up there, I swear I'll -"

"Okay, okay, okay!!!"

"And it won't just by physical damage either. Do you really want everyone here to know you're crushing on the girl who's supposed to have you on 24-hour surveillance?"

"What?!?! That's not true at all!!"

"Then why are you blushing?"

"I'M SUNBURNED!!!"

"Whatever… Just remember…." Wolfwood walked off, leaving the extremely embarrassed Vash in his wake.

--END FLASHBACK--

'If they're here I'm gonna kick his ass so hard he'll-'

"Nicholas!"

Wolfwood looked up. "Yeah?"

"Don't you think we should give Mr. Knives a ride back to Sand?"

"WHAT?!?! But honey, we can't go back now, we just got here! And-"

"Don't bother." Knives' cold voice even sent shivers down Milly's spine. "I'm not going back to Sand anyways." He turned and walked away.

"Well…" Milly watched him walk off. "I guess he still hasn't warmed up to us yet, huh darling?" Wolfwood fell to the ground.

An hour later, the two newlyweds arrived at the inn. Wolfwood carried Milly (with much difficulty) over the threshold. After depositing her on the bed he took a step back to catch his breath. Milly seemed to glow with happiness in the violet twilight.

"Who knew… married life could… be so… physically demanding?" Wolfwood panted with a grin. "That baby will definitely be a big, healthy boy."

"Nuh-uh. It's a girl. I can tell."

"How?"

"I'm not really sure. I just know, somehow."

Wolfwood smiled. "Well, either way, we're gonna be parents." He took off his shoes and gently lay down beside her. "Ya know, I never thought I'd live to do this. Any of this." He lifted Milly's left hand and twirled the golden band on her finger.

"I'm lucky to have found you," Milly said earnestly. "I can't imagine a more caring father than you'll be." Wolfwood put a hand behind her head and drew her into a soft kiss. Her hands ran along his back, and he tangled his fingers in her silky hair.

"I love you so much," she whispered.

"I love you too. God how I love you." He smiled. "Let's get some sleep. We've got a lot to do tomorrow."

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"WHAT?!?! What kind of inn is this?!?!" Meryl demanded.

"Sorry miss. We only have 5 rooms, and it's the tourist season."

"Tourist season?!?!? All that's out here is sand!!! Honestly, do you expect me to believe that bull -" Vash put a hand over her mouth.

"We'll take it," he said, handing over the money and taking the key from the man.

"Good luck son, you're gonna need it to handle that one." Vash gave him a solemn salute before pausing.

"What?" Meryl took that instant to bite into his hand.

"GAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

The bartender half stood up as Meryl stomped on Vash's foot and pulled the key from his hand.

"You'll _handle_ me, huh?"

"I didn't say that!!"

"Well you were agreeing with what the old man said, weren't you?"

"Hey now young lady, I may be a little older than you but I'm certainly not an-"

"Shut up!!!"

The door banged open. "Is there a Miss Stryfe here?" a young boy panted out.

"Yes, that's me…" Meryl approached the boy. He held out an official-looking envelope and ran out as soon as Meryl took it.

"What in the world could this be? It's from the insurance society!!!" Vash moved behind her to read over her shoulder, the fight forgotten.

"Disaster in Elian… damages great… need help with disaster documentation… expertise needed, report immediately?!?!?!?"

"I wonder what happened…" Vash murmured. 'Wait, could Knives have had anything to do with this?'

"Only a few casualties…" Meryl turned to face Vash. "The plant exploded and the 6 engineers inside…" She shook her head. "I have to go down there first thing in the morning. You-"

"I'm coming with you Meryl."

She blanched. "Are you sure? I thought you wanted to look for your brother not get bored to death with my tedious paperwork."

"But he just might be…" Vash looked around the room. Everyone from the barman to the drunk guy beside the door to the black cat in the window was watching the two talk and listening with their ears strained to catch every word. Vash laughed nervously. "Hey, Insurance Girl, why don't we finish this conversation upstairs.

"For once, a good idea." The two tramped to their room in the very back of the inn. Meryl closed and carefully locked the door.

"That was…"

"Awkward, yeah," Vash finished. "I was gonna say, but what if Knives is in Elian. Or was. Maybe he had something to do with the plant explosion!"

"Well, if he was responsible, and I really hope he wasn't, it could mean he's gotten his memory back…" Vash stiffened in his chair "… or it could mean he just still hates humans."

"It may not have been him," Vash said as he took off his boots. "He hates humans, but I don't think he'd sacrifice a fellow plant to get rid of a handful of them." Meryl just shrugged, not caring for the conversation.

"Either way, as a member of the Bernardelli Insurance Society, I've been given the unfortunate task of getting to the bottom of this."

Vash sighed. "You sound like the old you, before Milly learned to balance you out."

Meryl snorted. "The only reason I mellowed out any was because Wolfwood had died, you'd left us, assumably for good, and Milly was pregnant, facing raising a child alone! How the hell could I not lose focus on my job for a while? I had to calm down and not focus on business so much!"

"I-I guess it was hard then huh?" Vash's serious voice startled Meryl. She glanced into his sad aquamarine eyes and felt her heart melt.

"It wasn't that bad, it's just, she missed Wolfwood so much. She loved - loves - that man so much. I had to help her get along without him. I just wish you'd been there to help me."

Vash placed his hand on Meryl's. "Does that mean you missed me?" He gave her one of his rare serious smiles.

"Umm, maybe a little… sometimes… okay, yeah, I did!" Flustered, Meryl pulled her hand away and gave Vash and indignant stare. "I got used to having you around. I know you had, uh, family problems-"

"Gee, that's putting it lightly."

"-but we still missed you." Vash smiled down at the strong, beautiful little woman in front of him.

"I'm sorry Meryl. If I could have stayed I would have. But thanks anyways." He bent down and hugged an astounded Meryl.

"Um, Vash?"

"Yeah?"

"You're REALLY scaring me."

"Oh. Ahaha…" Vash turned the hug into a death grip, swinging Meryl around like a rag doll. When he released her she swayed dizzily before landing on the bed.

THE bed.

Meryl removed her cloak and boots and glanced over at Vash as he ripped off his red coat, revealing the soft khaki pants and white shirt he usually wore. Before she could stop him, Vash took a dive for the bed, bouncing Meryl off into the floor.

"I get outside!!!" he called sounding like a little kid.

"I DON'T think so!"

"Aw, c'mon Small Gi- Meryl! Please? It's a big bed, I won't touch you! Honest!"

"I-I guess so. I can't make you sleep on the floor, it's too cold even for you."

"That's true!"

"But remember-" Meryl slid in between Vash and the wall "-you're taking your life into your own hands. We leave early in the morning." She pulled the blankets over her body. Vash inhaled deeply and sighed.

'How can heaven and hell be held within the same person at the exact same time?' Vash wondered, wishing he could put his arms around Meryl and apologize for leaving her and Milly alone for so long, but barely stopping himself from fear of losing his life.

'Why… why does my body feel so tight? Is it because of that idiot inching closer and closer to me? Can't be. Oh, that man _will_ pay in the morning.' Meryl smiled.

Ta-da! A little bit longer than usual, not much so. Man, one helluva storm just went by. Geez, I thought the house was gonna blow in around me! Now, I want to thank my reviewers (especially those who stuck with me during my 2-month absence):

PsychoChelsey: Thanks so much! I'm glad you like it! Simply ask, and you shall receive!

Tsunaharu-Haru: Oh, wow, you so just made my day! It's wonderful to hear that people like your story when you firmly believe you're committing literary suicide! A fellow fluff-lover!!!

Orion Kohaishu: Hey, it's great to hear you're still reading! It means at least one person cares! gives Orion a cookie There's more where that came from, IF you know what I mean. hint hint, nudge nudge, cough cough

WW: Muchas gracias! The idea for that seen hit me as I was looking at this scar I have on my hand, and thinking about how I hate to wear rings because of it. I dunno, seemed kinda cute! If you've got any suggestions, give me a holler!

Neptune Butterfly: Glad you like my fluffy. looks over at Sesshy, whom I have stolen Not you… Anyways, I promise I won't leave this thing hanging for so long next time. Thanks for coming back to see me!!!

Dodo: Thank ya much!

White Ninja Spy: AWWW! You're beyond sweet. You have no idea how happy that makes me. I will continue!!! .

itzjustme: Another fluffaholic. We should have weekly meetings. But I'm glad you read and so happy you reviewed. And thanks for the info. Where I live, anime and manga aren't really the culturally accepted art form, but we're gonna have an anime convention and my friend is taking me, cause she knows, like, EVERYTHING (except where to find it, other than pirating it off the Internet). Thanks again!

Warior: SWEET! Hooray! I'm happy you reviewed. Thank you for the compliment!

AnimeMichelle: Terse, but I'm loving it anyways! Oh geez, now I sound like a McDonald's commercial… Anyways, thanks bunches for reading!

Okay, next chapter will be actual plot, I swear, not just filler fluff. You can expect it by the weekend, cause Friday is my last day of school. Oh yeah! That makes me happy. I love all of my reviewers so much and I hope you come back for the next chapter!!! .


	10. Truth and Lies

Gee, it's just amazing how long a frickin' computer virus can keep me from posting…. Sigh. I was really lucky that it didn't totally gut my computer, but I lost the internet for several weeks. Oh well….. I got over a mild case of writer's block and I think you guys will like this chapter!! And thanks to all my reviewers; I'd never dreamed I'd get so many!!

Anime-fangirl 1: That's so funny! I'd never thought of that connection before… I hear ya on the couples too! Amen sister!!!!

Neptune Butterfly: I've said it before, I'll say it again… I don't accept dentist bills!!! Read at your own risk!!! Honestly though, I hope it wasn't too much. It was mostly a filler chapter, 'cause I totally lost the direction I wanted this fic to go in. But I've got it now! Thanks for the review.

Pyrotess: Anything for my beloved reviewers!

SapphireWhiteTiggress: I'm happy you like my story! I'll try not to keep you waiting too long in between updates.

Orion Kohaishu: Hey hey! Glad to see you came back again! I always enjoy your reviews! (slips Orion another cookie) Hee hee. The Vash/Meryl fluff is coming, I swear on my honor as a…. part of an angry mob in-waiting!!!! ….. 00**;** I'm still happy you like my fluff, but don't overindulge, look what happened to poor Butterfly!!!

Tsunaharu-Haru: OH my gosh… (blushes) I'm really sorry, I must have misread what you wrote. But I'm still happy you approve. Your comments always make my day! I'll get up the chapters as soon as I can.

White Ninja Spy: Thank you, thank you very much. I'm so gonna read your fic! You're so nice!

itzjustme: Yeah, it happened in episode 25, I think (anyone who knows, correct me if I'm wrong). Good catch, eagle-eye. (maniacal laughter) Nothing gets by you. Come on back now, ya hear?

WW: (blinks) Am I really that creative? Dude, I thought I just slipped between the cracks of the other fics that are so much better than mine…. YES!!! That's awesome!!! (big hug) Oh, I REALLY needed that encouragement. You are awesome.

koratlover333: Muchas gracias. Little bits like that encourage me to write just as much as the long reviews do!

Warior: So I didn't scare ya off huh? Good! (hands Warior a cookie) Just don't tell Orion, kay?

kuraku: You go! It's a darn good thing you checked before you just offed me like that!!!! I'll try to keep it more clear as to who's speaking from now on. Also, it's gonna stay in third person unless noted otherwise. One final thing: "speech" and 'thoughts'. I'll try to use the whole Vash thought, 'thoughts' and Vash said, "speech" thing to keep it easy to read. Thanks for dropping by.

Cherry Blossom Princess2: Thank you much, I'm glad you like it. Computer zombie??? You gotta love moms. lol

NinaWilliamsTheSilentAssassin: It makes me happy that you think this even comes close to Trigun in any way, shape or form. (faints) I hope you keep reading and review me! I want as many opinions as I can get.

dark-pyro-angel-2: Don't worry, it's coming!!!! I just want to torture you a LITTLE bit longer….. lol.

On to useless A/Ns! As if you all care about my life…. I'll probably be able to post more often the rest of this month and the next, assuming I don't have any more problems with my computer… So, here's the reason you're all here:

Liquid Sunlight

Chapter 10 - Truth and Lies

For probably the billionth time that day, Wolfwood stole a quick glance at Milly, who sat in the passenger seat with a strangely thoughtful look on her face.

"Honey, are you gonna tell me what you're thinking about, or am I gonna have to drive myself crazy wonderin' about it?"

Milly snapped to attention. "Did you say something darling? I wasn't listening, 'cause I was wondering why Mr. Knives was all alone yesterday. I thought he'd hang around Mr. Vash and Meryl… I'm kinda worried." She smiled at her husband who just gave her a look of disbelief before turning his attention back to driving.

"If you're worried about Meryl and Vash, they'll be fine. The most notorious gunman on Gunsmoke and the feistiest agent in the Bernardelli Insurance Society…" Wolfwood trailed off with a shrug. "As for the psycho brother, I'm pretty sure he'll survive being alone. Who knows, he might find his cronies out in the desert somewhere."

"OH, don't EVEN say that!" Milly squeaked. "Then he'll remember all the bad things and Mr. Vash-"

"I know, I know," Wolfwood said, wrapping an arm around Milly's shoulders. "I was joking!"

Milly pouted at him. "It wasn't very funny Nicholas."

"Sorry honey." Wolfwood squeezed her tight.

"It's alright." Milly smiled up at him. "So, where are we going?"

"The mountains. Not many people realize it, but there are hot springs up there, if you know where to look." Wolfwood grinned.

Milly's eyes went wide with excitement. "REALLY?! Wow, who knew?"

"Yeah," Wolfwood said, "and they're very therapeutic, good for the baby."

"And when will we get there?" Milly shrilled with anticipation.

"Couple of hours."

"Aw, man…"

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When Meryl woke up, she discovered that she had grown extra sets of both arms and legs.

With a groan, she attempted to escape Vash's grasp, debating where to land her first punch. "Vash, if you don't move your arms-" she gasped "-AND your hands, I swear to you I'll-" With a funny little scream, Vash jumped out of the bed. Meryl sat up, ready to come after him with a vengeance.

"Not going to TOUCH me huh?" she screeched as she prepared to pummel him.

"It was an accident!" Vash cried while dodging her blows. "An honest mistake, really!! I forgot where I was and I thought you were a soft, cuddly teddy bear!!!"

"TEDDY BEAR?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!" Meryl shrieked. "I'll SHOW you TEDDY BEAR!!!! And it isn't gonna be soft or cuddly you idiot!!!!"

Vash grabbed a towel and fled the room with a squeal. "Gonna take a shower!" he called back when he was a safe distance away.

The door next to Meryl's was flung open and an angry, disheveled man stormed out. "Can you people keep it down?!?!" he shouted.

"YOU KEEP IT DOWN!!!" Meryl yelled back through gritted teeth. The man cowered and ran back into his room. Meryl retreated back into her room as well, slamming the door as she went.

"Damn that man!" she rampaged. She opened up her suitcase and drug out some clean clothes to wear. She got everything else ready to go, and it wasn't until she had almost finished straightening the bedclothes that she realized what had happened: Vash had held her in his arms, probably all night!

'Maybe that's why I was so warm, and my dreams were all sweet,' Meryl thought before blushing and clapping her hands to her face. 'Meryl Stryfe does not get all lovesick over men, especially not THAT man!!!' she reminded herself. But the way he had just snuggled up with her and didn't try anything was kinda adorable… Meryl felt the heat rise to her cheeks.

Vash stood in the doorway watching her mental exchange with herself. 'What is she doing?' he thought as she blushed again, the reddest he'd ever seen her. He decided to wake her from her reverie. "Um, Meryl are you okay?"

She whirled around and turned even redder, if that was at all possible. "F-fine!" she stuttered out. Confused, Vash let her pass by him to the bathroom at the end of the hall.

Meryl slammed the door, berating herself. 'Why am I acting like some love-sick teenager?!?!'

Back in the room, Vash was just as confused. 'Why am I not unconscious?' he wondered, packing his few belongings back into his bag. 'She didn't even hit me once! But even if she had….' he grinned evilly to himself 'It would have been worth it, just to hold her and breathe in her scent. I think it was lavender. Mmmm, she smelled wonderful. Just being with her made all my nightmares go away. I haven't slept so well since…well… a really long time!' He walked over to the bed, and finished making it.

"Most peaceful night I've had in a while," Vash said, his voice echoing around the room.

Meryl standing in the hallway, heard him sigh. She took a deep breath of her own, putting on her best no-nonsense face and heading into the room.

"Finally ready to go?" Vash asked with a goofy smile. He inched backward from the glowering look Meryl gave him in return.

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Wolfwood gave Milly's shoulder a gentle shake. "Milly… honey… c'mon wake up." Milly opened her eyes and smiled at her husband. "We're here sleeping beauty," Wolfwood teased. Milly gave him a light smack on the arm.

When she climbed out of the car, Milly saw they had reached a tiny inn. Behind it, she could see wooden fences, steam pouring over their sides.

"Is that-?" she began excitedly.

"Yep," Wolfwood said. "Hardly anyone knows about this place. Hell, they only have two rooms they rent out!" He offered his arm to Milly and walked her to the door.

In the front room, two men, one old, one young, sat at a round table playing cards. When the couple entered, the older man jumped up. "That you Wolfwood?" he asked with a cockeyed grin.

"Yep, it's me!" Wolfwood returned the grin and stuck out his hand. "How've you been Pete?"

"Good as an old man can be: alive." Pete cackled at his own wit before extending a hand to Milly. "And who might you be little darlin'?"

"I'm Milly Thompson - er - Wolfwood!" She gave his hand an enthusiastic shake.

Pete glanced at Wolfwood. "The missus? Never thought of you as the marrying type, but stranger things have happened I suppose." Gesturing towards Milly's expectant tummy he added, "And you certainly didn't waste any time in starting a family." Milly blushed a little. Wolfwood scratched the back of his head.

"Who's your friend?" Milly asked sweetly, pointing to the young man still at the table. He had messy, tousled black hair and grey eyes. The kid leapt to his feet and stepped forward.

"I'm Rigel Harbin," he said. Wolfwood guessed his age to be around 20 or 21. He smiled. "Nice to meet you both."

"Rigel's from Adden Town. Part of some kind of movement to join the cities, and spread prosperity. Basically a load of crap."

"You say that now, old-timer, but we'll be up and running before even you bite the big one!" Rigel said contentiously.

"Whatever. Keep dreamin' kiddo," Pete rasped. Crestfallen and cursing the old man under his breath, Rigel sat back down.

"I think it's a wonderful cause!" Milly said huffily.

"His cause is the reason he's stuck here. He wrecked his car and has no way back to Adden. He can't even get a letter to them, 'cause the mail don't came 'round here too often. And the boys from October town only check on me every six months!" Pete cackled again. "Fool kid is stranded. But I suppose you folks are tired of listening to an old man. You came for the springs, right?"

Milly nodded eagerly. "Yes!" She and Wolfwood followed Pete to a room built right at the edge of the hot spring.

"Holler if you need anything. I'll have the kid put some towels in here for ya. Enjoy." With that, Pete was gone.

"Oh boy!" Milly cried out, trying to wriggle out of her clothes as fast as she could. Wolfwood laughed at her antics and gently helped her out of her shirt. He disrobed quickly and followed her out towards the springs. The stars shone brightly over the cold desert as the couple climbed into the warm water. Milly laid back with a sigh.

"This is wonderful," she cooed. Wolfwood just smiled at her and smoothed her hair back.

"Anything for you honey," he whispered lovingly. Milly giggled.

"You were right, too: it is good for the baby. She's never been so calm before." Milly placed a hand on her stomach.

"A few days here and we'll all be calmer than usual, especially without Tongari around," Wolfwood joked.

"I really hope they're okay…" Milly murmured, leaning against Wolfwood and staring up at the stars.

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Vash heaved a sigh. Meryl shot him a death glare before looking back down at the endless pile of paperwork before her.

As it turned out, a faction against the use of plants took responsibility for the explosion. This didn't mean any less documentation for the Insurance Society, however, and much of the paperwork fell to Meryl to complete, as the highest-ranking agent there.

She was also one of the most respected, because of the man she still seemed to be keeping out of trouble.

"Mer-ryl," Vash whined, "Are you almost done? You've done nothing but paperwork for the entire afternoon. We only spent about an hour at the disaster site, and I couldn't determine if Knives has even been here!"

Meryl rubbed her temple. "Vash, can you shut up for a while?" she grouched. "I have to get this done and into the mail as soon as I can! And without even Milly to help, it could take a while. Go on and get some dinner if you want. I'll probably be up late tonight working on this." She sighed deeply, hands flying across her typewriter.

"Meryl, you should really take a break," Vash said gently. "You need something to eat and I'm sure you're exhausted from the trip here."

"I told you Vash, this needs to get done now!"

Vash grabbed both of Meryl's hands in one of his and drug her towards the door. "C'mon, just come eat with me. PLEASE? I won't drink, I promise!"

Meryl looked unconvinced.

"Okay, maybe just a little," Vash conceded with a goofy grin. "But I need a drinking partner. Whaddaya say, huh? Just loosen up for tonight." He pulled Meryl in front of him and gave her a light shove toward the stairs.

"Oh, alright," Meryl agreed. "But just for a hour or two. I am NOT going to watch you party all night long, got it?"

Vash nodded and his smile grew. "All RIGHT!!!" he shouted, pushing Meryl out the door. He walked along behind her, his hands still on her tiny shoulders, guiding her towards the restaurant. Her muscles felt stiff and hard through the cloth of her shirt, and without really thinking Vash started rubbing.

Surprisingly, Meryl didn't lash out at him. She came to a dead stop in the street and murmured, "Wow that feels great."

"You're awful tense," Vash scolded. "Probably from all that paperwork you've been doing. When we get back to the hotel, I'll give you a good massage."

Meryl blushed a bright red and started coughing. "You… you don't have to do that…" she choked out.

"Don't worry about it. You can give me a massage too, if you insist!" Vash said merrily as he pushed open the door to the restaurant. Shocked, Meryl let the door close behind him, barely registering the riotous laughter from the other side.

When she'd collected herself, Meryl reached for the doorknob. At that moment, a brown-headed man opened the door from the inside and shoved past her with a dark look.

'Tough guy, huh?' Meryl mused as she watched him head down the street. 'Jerk.'

"Meryl!!!" Vash called. "You're missing the fun!!!!" When Meryl entered, what she saw was enough to make any girl's eyebrow twitch in annoyance.

Vash, with his trademark tie wrapped around his head, had already gotten the party started. Everyone in the bar was singing and swinging cups around, generally making a drunken ruckus. Vash rushed over to her. "I saved you a seat!" he told Meryl proudly as he ushered her across the room. He sat her down at a table with two drinks already placed across from each other on it. He threw himself into a chair, and Meryl seated herself across from him.

"The people in this town are great!" Vash exclaimed over the shouting.

"Yeah, just wonderful," Meryl muttered as a bottle flew past her head.

Vash shook his finger at her. "Ah ah ah! You gotta lighten up Small Girl!"

Meryl just sighed at him and took a sip of the drink. "Hey Vash, how did you know what I like to drink?" she asked suspiciously.

He gave a nervous laugh and said, "Well, whenever you do drink with us, you always have that, right?"

"Right," she agreed. Then she thought to herself, 'I can't believe he noticed something small like that!' But it made her feel kind of happy and special too.

A waiter fought his way through the crowd and took Vash and Meryl's orders, then hurried back to the kitchen, careful of those who'd begun to dance around the room. Tables and chairs fell over as often as cans, bottles, and glasses did.

"So really, what's tougher about your job, me or the paperwork?" Vash asked sheepishly.

Meryl laughed. "Close call sometimes." Vash pouted and she laughed louder. "But most of the time the paperwork is much more tedious. And not near as fun," she added as an afterthought.

Vash's eyes lit up. 'She thinks I'm fun!' he thought to himself.

"Ever since I was a kid, I've never had much patience, so just sitting and doing paperwork really annoys me. That's why I'm always kinda cranky when I'm working on it, I guess." Meryl smiled at Vash. "My dad always said I would have an outdoorsy, adventurous kinda job."

Vash's serious smile jolted Meryl back into reality. 'Dammit!' she scolded herself. 'I just gave a little more of myself away…'

As though he read her mind, Vash leaned forward and whispered, "Why are you so afraid to let me in? Or anyone for that matter?"

"I- uh- what I mean is- er-" Meryl stuttered. Vash grinned condescendingly and Meryl gave him a quick punch to the forehead.

"I could say the same thing to you mister!" she shouted angrily. "You won't let anyone share your pain, your happiness, your fears… You just… you close everyone out, like we don't care about you!" The singing came to an abrupt halt and everyone stared at the tiny woman accosting the huge man.

"Meryl…" Vash said sweetly.

Meryl blushed at her outburst. "It's nothing. I'm going back to the inn." And with that, she stormed out.

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"I win again!" Milly cried happily. Rigel gave her a weak smile before gathering up the chess pieces.

"I've gotten a good enough thrashing for tonight, I guess," he said sheepishly.

He put the chess set on top of the ancient cabinet in the front room, then strode back across the floor, giving old Pete an evil stare on the way back.

"So, Rigel… what's your whole movement thing about, anyways?" Milly asked.

Rigel heaved a sigh. "It's not much of anything right now. Just an idea some of my friends and I came up with. We want to get greater communication in between the cities, and exchange ideas and information that can help us all live better." His eyes glittered as he continued: "Mainly, the idea came from the people of a town called Rayne. They have been trying their hardest to unite the scattered towns, but some people are so used to the seclusion…" He shrugged.

"So… so, what are you gonna do?" Milly inquired.

"I gotta meet the leader of the town. He's gonna be at a summit in the city of Calis soon, but I dunno how I'm gonna get there in time."

Milly brightened. "Hey darling, aren't we headed for Calis?"

"Huh?" Wolfwood asked distractedly. "Yeah, Calis. Huge city. We're headed there soon."

Milly gave Rigel one of her trademark smiles. "Maybe we can take you there!" When Rigel gave Wolfwood a fearful glance, she added, "Don't worry about him. I can talk him into it." She winked.

To change the topic, Milly said, "So, Rigel isn't a very common name…"

Rigel grimaced. "My father named me. He's an astrologist, and Orion is his favorite constellation. I've always hated the name."

"I think it's cute!" Milly exclaimed indignantly.

Rigel rolled his eyes. "Well, I'm gonna go to bed. Thanks so much for your offer. I really appreciate it, more than you can imagine." With a bow, he headed for his room in the back.

"What offer?" Wolfwood asked Milly suspiciously.

'Oh boy….' Pete thought. 'How's she gonna get outta this one?' He decided to make himself scarce, and moved as fast as his arthritis would let him towards his room.

"Never mind darling. I'll tell you all about it later," Milly whispered, planting a kiss on Wolfwood's cheek. He turned his head to catch the kisses with his lips and sighed.

"You certainly are very secretive these days," he said, pulling her closer. "But I kinda like it." Milly giggled.

Okay, there it is!!!! All I have to say is, REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!!!! That little purple button needs a good click. Love you guys, and promise to update soon!!!


	11. Small Revelations

Yet again, I have forgotten my promises... sigh. School is in session now, and I've got one more year to go!!! Then, semi-freedom!!! Anyways, I'm really gonna try to get these chapters up faster, but I'm not gonna guarantee anything. I'm pretty busy, but I'll dedicate a little time to writing each day. Thanks to the reviewers, who were few and far between (guess I deserved that tho'); I'll respond at the bottom. Enjoy!!!

Liquid Sunlight

Chapter 11 - Small Revelations

Momentarily stunned by Meryl's outburst, Vash could only mutter her name and watch her push through the drunken mob to the door. He shook his head slightly. 'I've never seen Meryl that emotional before,' he thought. What she'd said had touched him; struck a chord within him that hadn't been touched for years.

"Having trouble with your lady-friend, Vash?" one of the bar's patrons called out.

Putting on a sheepish grin, Vash waved a hand at the man. "Just a misunderstanding. I'm gonna go talk to her, before she realizes she wants to hurt me."

Back at the hotel, Meryl was attempting to get back to her paperwork, but it failed to distract her befuddled mind. Vash's soft, deep voice kept breaking into her thoughts.

"_Why are you so afraid to let me in?"_

His words irritated her, but also made her wonder. Did she really shut her loved ones out? Admittedly, she'd tried not to let her emotions get the best of her, but...

The door opened, but Meryl didn't bother to turn around; she kept her gaze fixed out the window. A soft sigh, and the door clicked closed. Heavy footsteps approached her, but Meryl remained unmoving. Finally, Vash came to a halt, and boldly let both hands rest on Meryl's shoulders. She gasped.

"I was afraid. I'm still afraid." Vash's voice was barely above a whisper. He let his hands fall to his sides when Meryl stood up and turned around.

"I don't think I ever told you about Rem..." Vash sat down on the edge of his bed.

"Vash...?" Meryl's voice betrayed her uncertainty, but she perched on the edge of her bed, across from him.

With a wry smile, Vash continued. "She took care of me and Knives after the spaceship crew found us. And she died because of us." Tears welled up in his eyes, but Vash ignored the sting. "I really loved her, Meryl. She was everything to me: mentor, parent, my world. She was a devoted pacifist, and believed you could solve anything through talking. Rem took her job seriously, and had great hopes for the future of mankind. She was killed while saving the people on that ship. And Knives couldn't have cared less. His only concern was the humans that survived." He drew in a shaky breath.

"Oh, Vash..." Meryl hesitantly put a hand on his knee.

"I watched Knives manipulate the survivors, hurting and killing so many innocent people. And I knew, somewhere, all the violence was making Rem cry. I vowed I would never kill, for her sake.

"I withdrew from everyone, tried not to get attached because I was afraid of causing someone else undue pain. When you and Milly started following me around, that's why I kept my distance. Meeting up with Wolfwood made it even more difficult, and I found myself getting you all into bad situations." Vash put his hand over Meryl's.

"I couldn't stand you guys getting hurt, that's why I never let you know what was going on, or exactly what I was fighting. Now I trust you guys so much more, and know you all really well, but..." he trailed off, a little of his goofy gunman façade returning. "I guess old habits die hard." He looked down at Meryl expectantly.

"You... you moron..." Meryl muttered shaking her head.

"Huh?"

"Did you really think we were that weak? You're such an idiot Vash. You underestimated us by a long shot, and I think we were all strong enough to be there for you then..." Her hand tightened on Vash's, making his eyes widen. "No matter how happy you looked on the outside, I could tell something was eating you up from the inside out. And now, you're stuck with us, so stop hiding yourself!" She gave him a defiant glare, as though daring him to disagree.

Vash smiled. "How can I make it up to you?"

"By not being so stupid from now on!"

"Okay, then." Vash grabbed Meryl's soft hands up in his own. "Then I have to tell you that you, the Big Girl, and the priest all mean so much to me. I don't know what I'd do without you. How's that?"

"Um...." Meryl could feel the heat rising in her cheeks, and her heart began to beat much faster. "It's... a start."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Wolfwood brought the car to a screeching halt in front of the Fallose City Inn, and glared in the rearview mirror. "You've got money, right?"

"Yeah, yeah." Rigel squirmed under his gaze. "Plenty."

"It's a damn good thing. WHY did we bring him with us again?"

"Darling, try to be nice," Milly admonished him gently. "He needs to get to Calis. We're going to Calis. He has his own money to get a room. What's the problem?"

"I don't like his attitude," Wolfwood growled. "And we're on our friggin' honeymoon for God's sake!!!"

"Don't worry. You won't see me the entire time you're here, 'cause I've got my own business to attend to." Rigel gave Milly a pleading look. "Just don't leave me."

"Of course not!" Milly smiled while Wolfwood grumbled.

"Shall we?" Rigel opened the door with a flourish and a bow.

Later, Milly had finally finished unpacking, and was taking a short break when Wolfwood returned to the room.

"The kid's gone," he informed Milly as he threw down his jacket. "Left about an hour after we checked in, according to a guy in the lobby."

"Well, he did say that he had business." Milly held out her hands expectantly. "Did you get it?"

Wolfwood nodded and opened up the bag. "I had to visit 4 stores to get the right flavor, but..." He placed a container in Milly's hands.

"All right!!! Cucumber-banana pudding!!!"

"Anything for you, honey." Wolfwood lovingly ruffled her hair.

"So, Nicholas..." Milly began between mouthfuls, "why were you asking people in the lobby about Rigel, anyways? Are you worried he might be in trouble?"

"I wasn't asking, and I'm definitely not worried about the brat." Wolfwood frowned. "But that kid is so idealistic and naïve and that can be dangerous."

"I think that people like Rigel are the best kind of people the ones who want to make things better," Milly said lightly.

"Revolutionaries are also the ones who usually wind up dead somewhere," Wolfwood grumbled, staring out of the window.

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The twin suns shed their fading light on two Tomases and their riders in the middle of the desert as they prepared to sink beneath the horizon. Despite twilight being nearly upon the two, it was still fairly hot, and the animals were already protesting.

"Vash, we're gonna have to stop. The Tomases can't go any further," Meryl said, wiping away some sweat with a handkerchief.

Vash looked up at the sky. He knew very well how cold desert nights could be, and he knew that the two of them were unprepared for camping. But there was no choice.

"Okay," he agreed. "Let's find some rocks. They'll hold in the suns' heat longer, and help keep us warm." Meryl nodded and took the lead towards several boulders under a rock overhang.

Vash hopped off his Tomas and led it behind Meryl. 'I have a blanket, she has a blanket, and we have one for each of the Tomases,' Vash thought carefully. 'Will that be enough? We won't be able to build much of a fire. We both have other clothes we can pile on if we need them...'

"This should work." Meryl's voice broke Vash out of his reverie. He quickly tied up his Tomas, and then gave Meryl a hand down from her own mount.

"It's gonna get cold," Vash told her. "We need to get a fire going soon."

Meryl nodded. "You go get some more wood; I'll start it with what I can find." Vash's stomach growled loudly and Meryl laughed. "I'll put something on to cook too."

"All right Small Girl!" Vash smacked her on the back before heading out.

Grumbling about idiot gunmen, Meryl quickly built up a fire and put some soup on to heat. She glanced up at the sky as the second sun disappeared completely over the horizon and the moons began to rise. She shivered. Vash hadn't been kidding about the cold. She was beginning to worry about him, just a little. He'd had on his trusty red coat when he headed out, but she figured he'd still be frozen when he returned.

"Geez, I can't feel my feet!" Meryl whipped around at the sound of his voice. Vash dropped his pile of wood near the fire and sat down as close as he could without getting burned.

"Eat some soup before you freeze to death," Meryl commanded. She shoved a bowl at him and pointed at the pot.

"Yes ma'am!!!" cried Vash with a salute. He served himself and ravenously downed a bowl in less than a minute.

"Vash, could you use a spoon?" Meryl complained. "We may be out in the middle of the desert, but still!"

Vash grinned sheepishly. "Can't." He held up his hands and Meryl gasped. The right one had become a pale shade of blue.

"Oh Vash!" She grabbed his hand in both of hers and started rubbing. "You could have gotten frostbite you idiot!" she growled as she thawed his frozen hand. When it became an angry red and Vash yelped with pain, she let go quickly.

"We need sleep," Meryl muttered. She moved away from Vash, to the other side of the fire.

"Yep," Vash agreed with a nod. "We're really gonna need to bundle up against the cold." He noted that Meryl had already put on another layer of clothes. "Good idea."

Meryl wrapped herself in a blanket and shivered slightly. "I'm still freezing," she admitted.

"It's getting even colder than I thought it would be," Vash said with a note of concern in his voice.

Meryl tossed him a blanket and a frown. "Quit worrying and just get some sleep Tongari." Vash lay down submissively and tried to sleep.

Several hours later, Meryl's eyes snapped open. Darkness had overtaken their camp, the rocks blocking the light of the many moons. Vash, seeing she was awake, moved over to her and crouched down.

"You okay? Not too cold, are you?" Meryl shook her head, but her teeth were chattering.

"The fire died," she pointed out.

"Yeah, I know. Ran out of wood, and the wind's blowing way too hard to get more." He sat down beside her. "We're gonna have to keep as warm as possible... so please don't hit me too hard, okay?" Meryl quietly gasped as Vash boldly pulled her to him, laying them both back and curling himself around her. His arms snaked around her waist as he held her to his chest, and pulled his big blanket around the both of them.

Blushing at his own audacity, Vash muttered, "We'll stay a little warmer this way. Sorry if it's a little uncomfortable..."

"I'm... fine," Meryl answered. "I mean, we gotta survive, right?" Unconsciously, she snuggled a little closer to Vash. He grinned.

"Meryl?"

"Yes?"

"Since we're being all open and honest, you know, more like friends instead of acquaintances, I have to tell you something."

Meryl's heart skipped a beat. "Y-yes?"

"I... this feels... really nice. I always sleep a lot more comfortably when I know you're nearby. And I don't have nightmares either." He felt Meryl squirm a little in his embrace. "Was that a little too honest and forward?"

"No... not really," Meryl stammered. Vash could see the scarlet blush creeping across her face that made her look all the more adorable in his eyes. "But you're right," she agreed after a second's pause. "It's... comfortable." She looked into his aquamarine eyes and tried to read what they were telling her.

"Meryl, I-"Vash began, but was interrupted by a low rumbling from deep within the sand they lay on. Both sprang to their feet.

"What's going on?" Meryl shouted over the din.

"I don't know!" Vash shouted back. "Could be an earthquake."

At that moment, the sand beneath their feet began to swirl and spiral downwards. The two were quickly swept into the strangling sand. Meryl took a deep breath before she was sucked under.

Somehow, someway, Vash found Meryl and was able to grab hold of her hand. As suddenly as they had been sucked downward, they emerged into air, falling faster and faster. Meryl struck her head against one of the metal walls that made up the shaft they had fallen into. Vash quickly pulled her into himself, as he knew they would hit bottom soon. As Meryl lay unconscious in his arms, he landed on the floor, and succumbed to blackness.

A cliffie! Haven't done that for a while! Well, soccer season is almost over, so hopefully I will have no excuses to slack (even though I have a wicked hard English class) and I will get these chapters to you guys faster! It's late so I'll reply to reviews later. Please click that little button at the bottom...... you know you want to! Love you guys!


	12. Faint

Alrighty! I'm back! Again! For the thousandth time! I'm sure some people out there want me dead at the moment, but maybe this chapter (resolving that agonizing cliffy) will make up for my undeniably long absence. Hooray for English! Research paper time (as tho' you people care) so I'm gonna be busy. Chapters will be slow as usual, but I will finish this fic if it kills me, and after that, look for me in the Rurouni Kenshin and the Full Metal Alchemist sections! Enjoy!

Chapter 12 – Faint

"What in the world are we going to do?" Vash's foggy mind vaguely registered a deep, masculine voice somewhere near him. "That woman is half-mad, demanding to see this guy every time we go into her room. We've had to lock the damn door to keep her from coming in here and causing him even more hurt than he's already in!"

"Well, keep her as contained as you can, and see if Doctor Wylde will give her a sedative. She most certainly cannot bust in here; with his wounds, the poor guy probably won't even be awake for a while," answered another male voice, softer and more professional.

The first man said something else, but Vash started to drift back into blackness. His head whirled as he fought to stay conscious. He lost the battle however, and drifted back down into dreams that felt like memories, and memories that more closely resembled dreams he wished he'd never had.

Sometime later, Vash woke once more, this time to a trickling sound and a coolness on his forehead. Forcing his eyes open, he waited patiently for his swimming vision to clear. Finally, he was able to see a woman, presumably a nurse, gathering up bandages and cloths, preparing to leave him. Her hair was a shade of auburn, and her twinkling brown eyes set off her round facial features nicely. When the woman turned to pull Vash's quilt up around him, she was startled to see his beautiful blue-green eyes staring back at her.

"Well hello!" she said cheerily. "Good to see you awake! Quite a nasty fall you and that little girl took!"

Vash licked his dry lips and tried to speak. "Wh… where am I? Where's Meryl? Is… she okay?"

"So many questions!" The nurse gave the quilt a final tug. "That should do it. The young lady is fine. You should be worried about yourself right now!" She gave him a sharp poke in the ribs and Vash let out a yell of pain.

"Yah! What'd you do that for?" he whined.

"Just a demonstration." She smiled down at him and counted his injuries off: "Three broken ribs, a nasty concussion, and some nice slashes that will add beautiful scars to your collection!" Vash blushed a little at the last remark.

"My name is Lana Trask. You need anything, you just call for me, alright?" She gestured to his bedside table. "There's some water and pain pills if you need them."

"Um, wait… Lana," Vash called after her retreating form. She turned with a grin. Vash looked sheepish as he continued. "Can you bring Meryl to see me? Please? I bet she's really worried."

Lana's grin widened. "She is pretty worried, but not nearly as worried as you are. I'll see what I can do," she said playfully, pretending not to see Vash's embarrassed expression.

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Meryl was quite proud of herself.

That man, the one who called himself Cal and cursed at her for banging on the door, had come at her with a needle. Meryl wasn't THAT injured however, and promptly got rid of both him and the needle. Unfortunately, he'd managed to edge out before she could cause some serious damage, but he'd be hurting for awhile, she thought smugly. Her head started to pound with new ferocity, and she sank to the floor.

With a sigh, Meryl glanced around her surroundings. She was in the small, gloomy room she'd woken up to. Drab walls closed around a metal-framed bed; there were no windows, and only one door.

'Reasonable,' she thought. 'We are underground, aren't we?' Funny how the strangest things didn't phase her anymore.

"I guess life with Vash does that to you," she muttered. She wished she knew where he was, and how he was. Her worry was consuming. She felt the sting of tears threatening to fall and choked in a little sob. What if these people were out to hurt Vash? What could she do with her head pounding and no way out of this little room? Warm tears flowed freely down her face now.

Suddenly a voice near the door startled Meryl. "There there dear." A stout, auburn haired woman came to her side and wrapped her arms around Meryl's shoulders, gently picking her up off the floor. "Vash? Do you mean the young man with blond hair?"

Meryl took hold of both her arms. "Yes! Do you know where he is? How is he?" Lana could feel her shaking.

"He's fine, honestly, just down the hall. And if you eat something for me, I'll take you down to see him." Meryl nodded meekly and sat down on the bed.

Lana nodded and touched the door. Meryl gasped as a keypad appeared and Lana punched buttons accompanied by a strange beeping.

"What-what the hell was- t-," Meryl choked out, backing onto the bed.

Lana, laughing, managed to say, "It's okay! I'm just calling Cal to get you something to eat." Her smile turned thoughtful. "I guess you two really are from above."

"Yeah," Meryl said weakly. "I'm Meryl Stryfe." She extended her hand to Lana.

"I'm Lana Trask," she answered, her friendly face letting even Meryl to relax.

A knock at the door caused both women to look up. Cal cautiously entered, throwing a look of ice at Meryl and handing the tray to Lana before leaving as quickly as possible.

"What's wrong with him?" Lana wondered.

Meryl scratched the side of her face embarrassedly. "We… um… we had a little run-in earlier, and I think I hurt him… a little." Lana tossed her head back and laughed again.

"Oh my! Between you and that Vash, I'll kill myself laughing!" She handed the tray to Meryl.

"How badly is that idiot injured?" Meryl asked before taking her first bite. Lana smirked, remembering the storm of tears she'd walked in on earlier.

"Not too badly. A concussion, three broken ribs, and a few cuts, none too deep, are all."

Meryl nodded. "He's been through worse. Usually he's gotten himself shot, and I have to nurse him." She lifted the bowl to her lips and drank down the soup.

"He'd be a lot better off and you'd be a lot worse, except he cushioned the fall for you." That caused Meryl to start. "He apparently put himself under you, because when we found the two of you, you were lying on top of him and he had both arms wrapped around you. It looked like you two were simply asleep; it was quite adorable actually." Meryl blushed and tipped her soup bowl up once more.

"You just have a slight concussion. We had to stitch up a pretty deep cut in the back of your head, but otherwise you're completely fine. You'll just have a bit of a headache for a few days." Meryl set down the soup bowl.

"Thank you for the soup Trask-san. Can we go see Vash now?"

Lana laughed again. "Please, call me Lana. Shouldn't you change clothes first? Yours are covered in blood."

Meryl looked down at herself. "Vash's blood," she guessed.

"Yes," Lana said with a nod, "but there's plenty of your own on the back. Put this on." She offered Meryl a darker-yellow dress, made of cotton.

Meryl smiled. "Thank you."

Lana helped her out of her dirty clothes and went to get them washed while Meryl cleaned herself up. "You can get a bath later," she'd said as she left. Meryl slipped the dress on; it fit perfectly. The sleeves reached a little past her elbows and the skirt hung below her knees. Meryl hadn't worn something so… feminine since Milly's wedding.

Lana came in, breaking into Meryl's thoughts. "Ready to go?" she asked cheerily.

Meryl nodded and followed her out into the hall. The walls were metallic, and every so often, they'd pass a door. Very few people passed them, and those who did looked at Meryl strangely. The men wore long tunics over their pants, and the girls wore dresses, many the same length as Meryl's or longer, in bright colors. The atmosphere projected a clean feeling, and a calming humming sound that Meryl hadn't noticed earlier hung in the air. Suddenly, they came to a huge room, revealing many stories of metal rooms and corridors much like the one they had just traveled through. Staircases connected the levels, and many people traversed them freely, few staring long at Meryl.

"Where… where is this place? **What** is this place?" Meryl asked, amazed.

"This is the city of Bri," Lana explained, holding in her giggles. "We're an underground town, cut off from the world above. We live on what you people call 'Lost Technology', and we very rarely have visitors, needless to say."

"Who knew such a place existed?" Meryl breathed, trying to take it all in while following Lana to a doorway.

"Here we are!" Lana announced. "I'll let you go in alone. Be back in a bit!" She waved and left Meryl.

Meryl watched her walk away and took a deep breath, her hand on the knob. She prayed Vash was conscious.

The door creaked forebodingly as she lightly pushed on the door. The room was dark, but Meryl could sense it was about the same size as the room she had been in. Then her nose caught the smell. Immediately she knew it as Vash's, that indescribable scent that made her heart skip a beat (stop that!!!).

Suddenly, the lights flicked on and Meryl was momentarily stunned. Vash sat on a low bed with his hand on the light switch. He was bare-chested, clad only in his white boxers. His scars stood out starkly under the light, as did his artificial arm, and he looked shocked, like he'd seen a ghost.

Meryl took a slight step forward. "I… I'm glad you're all right," she said, amazed at the almost emotional tone her voice had taken on. "I… I…"

Vash stood up.

Before she could react, he had grabbed her wrist, tightly but not enough to hurt, and pulled her into himself. Ignoring the pain in his broken ribs, he clutched her tightly, one arm around her tiny waist, his other hand wrapped in her hair, which now fell beyond her shoulders.

"Meryl," he breathed, taking his time and squeezing her tighter. "I'm so glad you're okay. I was so worried. So worried." He buried his face in her hair, taking in the scent.

In spite of her shock, and in spite of her usual emotional restraints, Meryl smiled. "I was worried about you too Vash." Her arms seemed to move by themselves as she wrapped them around him. Her hands rested gently on his warm back.

Without warning, Vash sat down on the bed with a little sigh of pain, taking Meryl with him. The result was her basically sitting in his lap, their arms still tangled up in a hug.

"Are… you okay?" Meryl asked tentatively.

"Better now that I know you're okay," Vash answered. He wasn't going to let go just yet. "Maybe I can get some rest now, now that you're around. I won't have nightmares." Meryl gasped slightly as he lay back on the bed, forcing her to lie back as well. Now their legs were entangled as well, giving Meryl a feeling of closeness she'd never had before.

"Having a little déjà vu?" Vash asked, knowing they were both thinking back to the campfire.

"I don't think we'll fall through the earth this time Tongari," Meryl said, a little bit of the edge returning to her voice. Vash saw she was trying to resurrect her barriers, and did what he had to do: he kissed her on the cheek, a light peck.

Then he kissed her other cheek.

Then he kissed her forehead, then the tip of her nose.

"Are you sure… you're alright?" Meryl asked again nervously, unaware that she was snuggling closer to him as her barriers slowly fell away once more.

"Yeah. My head hurts a little, but…" His eyelids drooped. "Nothing a little rest won't cure. Promise you'll stay?" He sounded like a child.

"…Yes."

"Good." His eyes shut, and he was asleep.

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Late that night, Rigel finally returned. Wolfwood heard him shut and lock his door over Milly's light snoring.

"Damn kid," he muttered.

The next morning, Rigel seemed gloomy and depressed.

"What's the matter?" Milly asked, sitting down beside him and giving him a pat on the shoulder.

Rigel gave her a grateful smile. "The group from Rayne hasn't arrived yet. And if they don't show up within the next couple of days, the talks will go all to hell." He slammed his fist on the table. "Dammit! Doesn't Arrowood know that without him we are totally screwed?"

"Don't think that way!" Milly cried. "You shouldn't depend on someone else for everything! You have to do things for yourself, get things going on your own!" She put on a maternal smile. "If I learned anything from my middle-little brother it's this: Never depend on anyone else to start everything. Believe in yourself, and get moving!"

"That's great advice," Rigel muttered with his head in his hands, "but who the hell is gonna listen to a 20 year-old kid?"

"He's got you there, honey," Wolfwood said. Milly rewarded him with a scowl. "This is never gonna work," Wolfwood continued snidely. "But let's get off the subject. We've got a letter from Vash and Meryl honey!"

Milly's mood cleared considerably, and her face lit up with an excited smile. "Really?"

"Yep. Here you go. They had to forward it from Pete's." Milly tore into the envelope, addressed in Meryl's neat handwriting.

"Meryl and who?" Rigel asked him, confused.

"Vash-san and Meryl-sempai are our friends," Milly explained. "I work with sempai, and Vash-san is under our 24-hour surveillance. Although he really doesn't need it anymore, so he's become more like a part of the family."

Rigel looked shocked. "You don't mean Vash the Stamp-"

"Listen to this!" Milly interrupted.

"_Dear Milly and Wolfwood,_

_I hope this letter finds you two, and if not, I'm having it sent on the hotel in Calis. Are you enjoying your honeymoon? We've been working (or at least I have). Vash and I haven't been able to find Knives, and you know that spells trouble, so we're off to find him. Also, there was a plant explosion in Elian, and guess who got called to the scene. Vash tagged along, in hopes of finding if Knives was connected in any way, but it was just one of those rebel factions against the use of plants. We've had no news of Knives since he stole out of Sand after the wedding, and I think Vash is getting a little edgy. He's acting strange at least._

_We've decided to head for a little town known as Rayne, thinking it's as good as any other place to star searching for Knives, and the idea of living things cultivated with lost technology appeals to both of us. We've heard that the area is beyond lush, and is actually wooded. From there, we're headed north, maybe even towards Calis. _

_Well, have fun and take care of yourself Milly! Be sure to eat right, and Wolfwood, please don't let her strain herself._

_Missing you,_

_Meryl_

"Isn't Rayne where that Arrowood guy is supposed to be from?" Milly asked as Wolfwood shook the envelope, and then picked up another piece of paper off the floor.

"Yeah," Rigel said thoughtfully. "I'd heard about the forest. It's almost a miracle. They also offer the technology, as well as friendship in these types of conferences."

"Look at this," Wolfwood said with a smirk. He held up the paper. A little doodle of Vash and Meryl, obviously done by Vash himself, covered half the page. The cartoon Meryl was bashing the cartoon Vash over the head, but he continued to give his "love-and-peace" sign. Below was a scribbled note:

_Big Girl and Wolfwood,_

_Just wanted to drop you a note! Me and Meryl are heading out to find Knives, just in case. If Wolfwood was brought back, who knows if Knives' other lackeys were given new life? We're headed north right now, most likely detouring to the town of Rayne. _

_Meryl is a little pissed off at me (as usual), but maybe her attitude will change when get to Rayne; I hear it's so beautiful, you forget about everything. Also, traveling with her will be fun, and something I've never done before (without her and the big girl forcing themselves on me). Who knows? We might even get to the point where she'll stop hitting me, at least not so hard._

_VASH_

"I guess Vash-san can dream, huh?" Milly giggled.

"Yeah. But it really makes me think: how many other people **were** revived when I was?" Wolfwood mused.

"I…" Milly frowned. "I really don't want to think about the whole thing, darling."

"What… what are you people talking about?!" Rigel exclaimed.

"You tell him, darling," Milly said, leaning back. "Meryl-sempai says I have to rest and eat right. And pudding is just the thing!" She held up her spoon as Wolfwood groaned.

"Well, I guess the whole thing starts with that idiot gunman Vash, better known to me as Tongari…"

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"Achoo!" His own sneezing woke Vash up. He rubbed his eyes and blinked around the room, forgetting where he was.

"Oh," he muttered, grabbing his head. "I'm in Bri, I'm injured, and my head hurts like hell." He grabbed for the pain pills and the water on his bedside table and gulped them down.

Then he remembered.

"Meryl?" he called out, painfully swinging his legs out of the bed. "Meryl?! Where'd you go?" Vash placed a hand on his ribs before attempting to stand. Gritting his teeth, he heaved himself up.

'Yep, definitely worse than yesterday,' he thought with a grimace. Vash took a tentative step, his concern mounting as pain rippled up his side and he felt stitched tear in his skin.

"Vash!!! What the hell do you think you're doing, you idiot?!?!" Vash looked up to see an incensed Meryl in the doorway.

"Just… looking for you," Vash grunted, still holding his side. The pain had dulled to an ache, but it was still torture.

"Well, I guess it's okay. You need to go get a bath anyways," Meryl conceded. She moved across the room, grabbing a robe out of the closet.

"C'mon," she said. "We're going a little ways down the hall, so you have to put something on." She stood on her toes and held out an arm of the robe towards him.

"Alright." Vash obliged, and then Meryl helped him with the other arm. She moved in front of him and drew the soft material up over his shoulders. With delicate hands, mindful of his ribs and cuts, she pulled the two sides together and knotted the belt neatly.

"Now you're decent." Meryl grabbed a towel. "Do you need help?" Vash nodded and she placed herself under his left arm.

"It hurts worse than it did," Vash admitted.

"Don't whine," Meryl scolded him. "You're just stiff. It'll work out before we get to the bathroom."

"If you say so."

Meryl helped him to shuffle into the hallway, where they met Lana.

"Oh, up and about already are we?" she exclaimed cheerily. "You are a good nurse Meryl!"

Meryl shook her head. "No, he's just tough-skinned." She grinned up at Vash, who gave her a nice scowl.

Lana laughed. "Do you need any help, Vash? I can have Cal or his brother Hal down here if you want."

"No, no, that's okay," Vash said with a meek wave of his hands. "I'll be okay."

"Alright; Meryl, you take good care of h-" Lana stopped mid-sentence, staring down the hallway in awe. Meryl and Vash's heads whipped around to see what she was staring at.

A group of well-dressed gentlemen paraded down the hall. Each wore a different sort of formal suit, and each held his head high, very sure of themselves; most likely, they were leaders of some sort, Vash thought. As they approached, Lana gasped.

In their midst walked a young woman, around 19 or 20. She was beautiful, with long golden hair cascading down her back and sapphire-blue eyes. She wore a long violet ball gown, and walked with an unnatural sort of grace. The girl radiated strength and determination.

Lana bowed as the group passed by, and the girl gave her a wistful smile. When her gaze landed on Vash and Meryl, her eyes widened slightly, as though surprised. She quickly regained the smile though, before turning her head forward once more and following the gentlemen down the hallway.

"Who were those people?" Meryl asked Lana.

Lana took out a handkerchief and wiped her brow before answering. "They were ambassadors, here to try to talk us into duplicating and sharing technology, as well as cooperating with the cities above. And if anyone can talk those geezers into it, it'll be that young woman we just saw."

"Who was she?" Vash wondered. She had looked almost familiar to him.

"She's Oriana Arrowood, from the town of Rayne. The townis trying to create links between all the cities of Gunsmoke. I never thought I'd live to see it, but if Oriana is the driving force behind it, there's no doubt in my mind that it can be done." She gestured at the girl's retreating back. "She's joined so many cities together already, speaking about the need for unity, and backing it up by sharing Rayne's flora-growing technology with those who accept the proposal. She's a strong young woman, in more ways than one. Would you guess that she's survived several attempts on her life? I hear she's handy with a gun."

Lana glanced down the hallway once more. "Enough about that. Go get him cleaned up; I have to see if there's anything I can for the conference." She hurried off.

Well? Worth the wait? I'm beginning the next chapter ASAP, and I'll get it up as soon as I can. Here are my reviewer replies (I love you guys!):

Anime-fangirl1: Here you go! I hope I'm not too late!!! Thanx.

Moonmage: That was… brief. But thank you nonetheless.

Neptune Butterfly: A regular reader! (If I can call you that, considering my sporadic updates…) I'm glad my fluffy helped you out of your bad mood… I was a little depressed when I wrote this, but I feel better! Come on back now, ya hear? (As they say where I'm from!)

Vashluver1: I'm very sorry I didn't answer reviewers last time; I was too freakin' tired. I felt like hell, and just couldn't do it! But I'm answering now, and I want to thank you for reviewing. Also, school does suck.

Saraki: I can and I did! MUWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!! Just kidding. See, SEE? It's so cruel! I should stop that….. (thanks)

Elf3748: Once again, the evil cliffie! As for the K/M scenes, that's how I meant them to be portrayed. I think that if Knives had gotten over his hate for humans and Rem had lived, he and Vash would have viewed her as a mother or a big sister, and I guess I kinda infused those thoughts into my story without realizing it. I'm not much for the K/M pairing, but I never do like alternate pairings much I'm afraid. Thanks for reading my bag of crap.

The nadja: Thank you much; another fluffaholic? Once again, I'm shocked to think that anyone believes that this comes even close to the greatness that is Trigun. The gods are smiling down on me, I guess. I'm glad you like it!

Pyrotess: Need I say more? The next chapter will elaborate a little, to help you understand even better. Thanks for dropping by!

Snwbunny: You junkie. Playing, playing! I'm happy you enjoy my story, and I promise to get on uploading chapters quicker!

Orion Kohaishu: You're still here?!?!? I'd thought for certain I'd scare you off quick. You're just here for the cookie, aren't you?! (gives a cookie) Hee hee. Keep on reading.

HazelEyed Freak: Yes Master! I will update…. But you'd have to wring me dry to get 5o bucks out of me… you can try if you want….

To reiterate, I will be posting again soon, and the story should be over in 5-10 chapters, probably near the lower end of that. Thanks to everyone who read, and please review; I live to please you!!! Love you guys.


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